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Here in Australia, you would just need to call the TIO to get it sorted out. Likewise if financial institutions are stuffing you about, call ACMA. If it's an en
by dools 3y ago
Here in Australia, you would just need to call the TIO to get it sorted out. Likewise if financial institutions are stuffing you about, call ACMA. If it's an energy company, call Energy and Water.
A perfect example of how the private sector cannot self regulate to the benefit of consumers simply because a profit motive exists.
Every time I've made an ombudsman complaint I have received Good Service™ from the company and a speedy resolution to my problem.
- emodendroket 3y agoIt seems worth saying that in this instance a lot of the problem was that once it got into the hands of the prosecutors Comcast could not simply "just drop" the charges but only request that the state do so.
- dools 3y agoI actually think that a lot of the problem is the fact that "cable theft" is a class of crime all on its own! "Sometimes, operators turn on a signal by accident or forget to deactivate it after a tenant stops a cable subscription. People are liable for any services they use in this way and it is generally advisable to contact the cable company to report an unexpected cable signal" https://www.mylawquestions.com/what-is-cable-theft.htm https://www.mylawquestions.com/what-is-cable-theft.htm That's absurd, it can only be the result of corruption.
- ajxs 3y agoFellow Australian here. I can confirm every word of this. The TIO gets things done. The telecom companies live in fear of the ombudsman's office, to the point that even mentioning their name can get things moving.
- ETH_start 3y agoThe private sector is not expected to be able to self-regulate by free market advocates. With the exception of anarcho-capitalists, those who believe in a free market regard the government's role as integral, in providing public goods like an effective justice system that polices misbehavior like fraud. What distinguishes a belief in free markets is believing that misbehavior—that government bodies have a right to punish and prohibit—does not include mutually voluntary interactions, like selling high-risk financial instruments to willing customers, who according to a court, are deemed to have provided informed consent to those risks.
- OhMeadhbh 3y agoEvery time I see the phrase "free market" I like to point out the term originated from Adam Smith who used it to describe "markets free from rent-seeking behaviour." Which is COMPLETELY different than the way the phrase is used today. Also, "Capitalism" used to mean "using capital to increase capital." We now use it to mean "using capital to increase private wealth." I understand what you're trying to say and am not refuting it. I just think it's funny we let "bandits" [1] redefine the vocabulary of the social construction of commerce. 1. Obviously I do not mean to imply bankers are "bandits" in the classical sense. Not a single one of them went to jail in 2008. Were they bandits, they most certainly would have wound up in the hoosegow.
- ETH_start 3y agoAdam Smith was also an advocate of free markets as the term is defined today. Wealth of Nations is replete with moral objections to suppressing the right to freely contract—even to prevent combinations he found dangerous, like industy interests congregating—and praise for less interventionist government policies like low taxes, etc.
- dfex 3y agoI think you mean APRA (Australian Prudential Regulation Authority), not ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority). You call ACMA when someone is interfering with your licensed radio spectrum, and from experience, the service is excellent!
- dools 3y agoSorry I mean AFCA