Itemised bills
In brief…
Customers have the right to receive bills that are not itemised.
In more detail…
What are the rules on itemised bills?
Who needs to comply?
These rules apply to service providers (eg telecoms providers or internet service providers).
What are the rules on itemised bills?
Regulation 9 says that if a subscriber asks to receive bills that are not itemised, you must comply with that request. So you can send itemised bills as long as the customer hasn’t asked you not to.
This recognises the fact that itemised bills may put the privacy of users at risk, even though many subscribers may find them useful to verify the amount of the bill.
The rights of subscribers who want to receive itemised bills need to be balanced with the privacy of other users. Ofcom also recognises privacy in its sector rules (‘General Conditions’). For example, General Condition C3 says subscribers can request itemised bills; but it also says that itemised bills should not include calls to Freephone numbers (which may include helplines). For further information please see Ofcom’s website.