How to make a complaint about your Internet service to the CRTC

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             The CRTC does not regulate the rates charged to consumers  for Internet service or the billing practices of Internet service providers (ISPs). We therefore cannot act on complaints  that concern these issues. We therefore cannot pursue complaints about rates for you.   
               
             However, we do oversee  how service providers are allowed to use Internet traffic management practices  (ITMPs). These practices are used by ISPs to help them manage the flow of  traffic in their networks. One of the more widely used ITMP practices is called  “throttling.” If you think your provider is using unacceptable practices which  impact your Internet service, you can complain to the  CRTC.
                     Know your rights
                     The CRTC oversees how  your Internet service provider may use Internet traffic management practices,  including:
                     

• Technical  practices used to modify Internet traffic flow
• Notification  and disclosure of economic practices that link Internet service rates to how  much you use the Internet
  

                     What your provider must tell you
                     Your Internet service  provider must disclose to you:
                     

• Information  about pricing, including any pricing that links Internet service rates to how  much you use the Internet
• Information  about whether technical traffic management practices are being used and, if  they are, the effect they have on your Internet service
  

                     Your service provider  must display the following information about their technical traffic management  practices clearly and prominently on its website, in customer contracts, and in  Terms of Service documents:
                     

• Why the  Internet traffic management practice is being used
• Who is  affected by the practice
• When it  will apply the practice
• The type  of Internet traffic—for example, peer-to-peer file sharing—subject to the  practice
• How the  traffic management practice will affect your Internet experience, including the  specific effect on the speed of your Internet connection
  

                     Introducing or changing a practice
                     At least 30 days  before introducing a new traffic management practice or revising an existing  one, your service provider must display information about the change on its  website. This is not required if the change makes the practice less  restrictive.
                     Prohibited traffic management  practices
                     Unless your service  provider has received prior approval from the CRTC, it may not use traffic  management practices that do any of the following:
                     

• Lead to  blocking the delivery of content to you
• Result in  the noticeable degradation of time-sensitive Internet traffic
• Slow  non-time-sensitive traffic to the extent that it amounts to blocking the  content
  

                     For persons with disabilities
                     All ISP website  disclosures must be accessible to persons with disabilities.
                     How to make a complaint about your Internet service
                     Before you complain to the CRTC about an  Internet traffic management practice, you should first contact your Internet  service provider to see if it can resolve the issue.
                      If your service provider doesn’t address  your complaint to your satisfaction, and you believe that your service  provider’s traffic management practices are not compliant with the CRTC’s  policies, you can complain to the CRTC. Before doing this, make sure that you know your rights.
                     What to include in your complaint
                     In your complaint, explain why you think  your service provider’s traffic management practice doesn’t meet the  requirements set out in their traffic management policy.  It is not necessary to provide technical  details about the problem, but the CRTC needs enough information to understand  the problem.  Please, clearly describe:
                     

• What part of the traffic  management policy you believe the provider has not followed
• When the problem occurred, and  whether it is a recurring problem
• Which software program, or  application, has been affected
• How the application has been  affected
• The steps you’ve taken to try  to resolve the issue with your service provider, including your provider’s  response to your complaint
  

                     How to send your complaint
                     You can submit your complaint to the CRTC  using any of these methods:
                     

• Online: Ask a question or  make a complaint
• Mail: Secretary General, CRTC,  Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N2
• Fax: 819-994-0218
• Alternative formats: other  formats that improve accessibility for people with disabilities
  

                     How we respond to complaints
                     When we receive a complaint from an  individual about a service provider’s use of Internet traffic management practices,  we review the evidence submitted by the individual and decide whether the  complaint raises compliance issues.
                     Complaint resolution process
                     If we believe your complaint raises potential  compliance issues:
                     

• We will forward the complaint  to your service provider within 15 days of the date we received the complaint.
• The service provider will be  expected to file a response with the CRTC, and with you, within 20 days of receiving  the complaint.
• You may file a reply to the  service provider’s response, with a copy to the service provider, within 10  days of the date that the service provider has filed its response with the  CRTC.
• We will review the service  provider’s response to your complaint and any reply you may file and determine  whether its traffic management practices comply with the CRTC’s policy and with  the Telecommunications Act (the Act).
• If we consider that the service  provider’s traffic management practices comply with the CRTC’s policy and with  the Act, we will close the complaint and notify you as soon as possible, no  later than 15 days from the date we received the ISP’s response.
• If the traffic management  practice does not comply with the CRTC’s policy and with the Act, we may take  one or more of the following actions:
  
  • Request more information from the  provider or from you
  • Request a meeting with the service  provider to discuss the complaint in more detail
  • Send a letter to the service  provider outlining corrective measures it must take
  • Initiate an on-site inspection  or independent third-party audit to obtain additional information
  • Issue a notice of consultation
  • Initiate a hearing at which the  service provider would have to explain why the CRTC should not issue a  mandatory order, which the CRTC could register with the Federal Court; the  mandatory order would direct the ISP to take corrective actions, and could  include partial reimbursement to the customer
    
• If the traffic management practice does comply with the CRTC’s policy and with the Act, the complaint is closed.
  

                     How to see what complaints have been made
                     All findings of non-compliance will be  published on our website with the service provider’s name and the nature of the  complaint. Every three months, the Commission will publish a summary of the  number and types of complaints it has received on its website, including the  number of active and resolved complaints.

                       Related  information
                       Internet
                       Status Report – Complaints  Related to Internet Traffic Management Practices (ITMPs)

From: CRTC (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission - a public organisation in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasting and telecommunications)