Telus Corp. was the most complained-about telecommunications service provider in Canada in the past year, according to a new report from the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS).
In the mid-year report released April 30, Telus took first place from Rogers Communications, who held first place for most complaints for the past two years after taking the spot from Bell Canada.
CCTS dealt with 11,909 complaints from telecom service provider customers between Aug. 1, 2024, and Jan. 31, 2025, which it said was a 12 percent increase in complaints compared to the previous year.
Telus, Rogers, Bell, Shaw, and Fido were the top five complained-about telecom service providers and made up 72 percent of all complaints received by CCTS.
Complaints about Telus made up 19.7 percent of all complaints, which was a 62.9 percent increase from the previous report’s figure of 9.1 percent.
Rogers accounted for 18.7 percent of complaints, followed by Bell at 16.7 percent, Shaw at 9.6 percent, and Fido at 6.8 percent.
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The increased complaints about Telus were largely driven by issues related to incorrect charges for monthly plans, breaches of contract, and price increases for monthly plans. Five years ago, complaints from Telus customers made up 7.1 percent of all complaints.
Meanwhile, Rogers received fewer complaints, with a 21.1 percent improvement from the last mid-year report. Bell customers had more complaints compared to the previous year, with an increase of 13.7 percent.
Shaw Communications, which was acquired by Rogers in 2023, had significantly more complaints than the previous year with a 194.3 percent increase. A large portion of the complaints were about rental equipment, contract issues, and increased prices of monthly plans, CCTS said.
Fido, another service provider previously acquired by Rogers, had fewer complaints compared to the previous year with a 23.7 percent improvement.
The most complained-about category of service was wireless services, which made up 50 percent of all complaints. Internet services accounted for 26.3 percent of issues, while television service complaints rose by almost 50 percent, making up 15.9 percent of total complaints.
The top issues cited by Canadians overall were billing issues, including incorrect monthly charges, not receiving credits or refunds, and unexpected increased prices of monthly plans. Canadians also often complained about issues regarding disclosure, intermittent service, complete loss of service, contract issues, and problems with repairs and appointments.
When signing up for telecom services, Canadians should read their contracts carefully to fully understand if any portion of the price could change without notice, CCTS Commissioner and CEO, Howard Maker, said in a release on the latest report.
“Checking billing statements regularly to know what you’re paying is also very important. We see many cases where what a consumer expects to receive doesn’t align with the agreement,” he said.
Despite an increased number of complaints, CCTS said they continue to successfully resolve complaints from Canadian phone, television, and internet customers.
“In the most recent reporting period, the CCTS resolved 85% of complaints to the mutual satisfaction of the customer and service provider,” said Maker.
