Has the time come to put this universally detested charge to bed?Consumers have been arguing for more than a decade that this fee in unnecessary and in fact punitive.The problem is that regardless of the status of the customer, the fee is charged whether the client is pay as you go or on a contract.There is no reward for customer loyalty by any of the major wireless carriers.It appears to the consumer that they are not customers but rather victims of corporate abuse.There is an argument to be made for this position; an argument of such merit that it has been the origin of several class action lawsuits over system access fees, 911 emergency charges, text charges among others.
Bell Canada have announced a partial withdrawal of the feefollowing a similar move by Rogers Communications.The System Access Fee is charged by the carriers and argued that it is necessary to pay for system usage at a governmental level.Critics claim this is a ruse and little more than a money grab since each time they access system they are paying for the call anyway.The retailers seem to be confused about it as well, offering varying explanations from government tax (which is no longer allowed) to paying for towers etc.
The time has come for some industry regulation since they can't seem to be honest with themselves, their customers or government.Their attempts at self regulation seem to be arguable with the CRTC and often they too appear to throw their hands in the air.
There are two unmistakable facts in this situation.First, the consumer is being lied to.Second, the need for industry regulation is not forthcoming from government who refuse to get involved in the private sector.In the meantime, Canadians continue to pay some of the highest wireless fees in the world.No one seems to want to press the issue and force change and those who are following through are up against corporate legal departments that are among the largest in the country.