Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:15/03/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I live on ******** ****** There is a crew from Thunder Bay telephone, cutting all the trees in my front yard. They never notified me that this was going to take place or ask my permission. I tried to contact someone responsible at Tbaytel, but that is near impossible. I want my trees back.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/04/2024

  March 29, 2024
  On March 15, 2024, Tbaytel received an email from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) regarding customer complaint ID ********** In the complaint the complainant, Mr. Richard ******* states that a crew from Tbaytel were “cutting all the trees in my front yard”, and that “They never notified me that this was going to take place or ask my permission”. I have reviewed the customer’s complaint and provide the following reasons:
  Tbaytel continues to transition its network from legacy copper wire infrastructure to a new and superior fibre optic network to be able to provide customers with the state-of-the art services such as fibre internet at speeds required to meet current and future demand and growth. This transition requires physically replacing the copper wire infrastructure with fibre optic cable throughout our serving territory.
  As part of the process to install the new fibre optic cable in rural areas, tree trimming, or removal is required, and trees are identified as either requiring removal or trimming. Often, the branches that need to be removed are part of a tree on private property but reach out over road allowance. To properly trim these branches, they must be cut back to the tree itself.
  Once a fibre upgrade project has been planned and engineered and if that work is being done in a rural township, the township office is approached and informed of the upcoming work and requirements. A list of specific addresses is not provided, but roads and drives in the project area are identified. They are told about Hydro Ready Work (MRW)), Tbaytel MRW (brushing, anchors, duct installation) and to be alert of work crews in the area. In this case the complainant’s property is part of Neebing township.
  When it is determined that properties within a fibre upgrade project area require tree trimming or removal a tender is then sent out and only approved arborist companies are eligible to do the trimming and removal work.
  Upon evaluation, it was determined that the lower branches, to 8m height, at Mr. ******** property at **** ******** ***** required trimming. The first step in doing this trimming is to assess if the branches or trees are within road allowance. In Neebing township, the road allowance is 10m from the road center line. Once it is determined that the trees in question are within the road allowance, Tbaytel tree trimming flags are hung from the branches. This is done to notify the homeowner that work will be required on or near their property. If they have any questions or concerns, they can call into Tabytel and discussions on the planned work will be held. The time between identifying and hanging flags will range between 2 – 3 weeks.
  After receiving Mr. ******** complaint Tbaytel staff returned to the property at **** ******** ***** to review and assess the work that was done. The inspection confirmed that the trees in question were within the 10m road allowance, and the branches were trimmed to the requested 8 m height on the road side of the trees. At this time Tbaytel staff did notice that there are branches cut higher than 8m, done by the contractor working in behalf of Hydro One.
  Finally, I spoke with staff from Tbaytel’s contact centre and there is no record of Mr. ****** contacting Tbaytel from either his home phone or cellphone at anytime from January 1, 2024, to the date of his complaint.
  Respectfully,
  Stephen *******
  
  
  
  

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:27/06/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  The cell service is totally *****  and when you call people tell you it is being worked on. Over 2 months of text messages not go and dropped calls over and over. Tbaytel should have to answer for this either by a credit on customers bill or the bill should be way way lower for be having proper service

  Business Response

  Date: 21/07/2023

  **** *** ********
  I received your correspondence regarding a complaint submitted to the Better Business Bureau by a Tbaytel customer regarding issues with his wireless service in the Devlin area for the past two months (complaint ** ********). In order to investigate the matter further, I consulted with Tbaytel’s Wireless Engineering department and was advised that there have been no known issues with wireless network performance in the Devlin area nor has any scheduled maintenance taken place that would impact his service.
  
  With respect to the customer’s statement in his complaint that “when you call people tell you it is being worked on” I am unaware of the details to which he is referring as it does not appear that he has contacted Tbaytel to have our Technical Support team troubleshoot his issues for him. For additional context, I reviewed the customer’s account logs corresponding with the phone number he provided in his complaint. Tbaytel has no record of the customer contacting us regarding issues with his cellular service since July of 2022. At that time, Tbaytel’s Technical Support team assisted the customer and determined that his wireless device was ‘flapping’ between the HSPA and LTE networks. The settings were changed such that his service should have improved; however, the Technical Support representative with whom the customer spoke also advised that he should call back to follow up with Technical Support about the improvements made at a later date. Again, Tbaytel has no record of the customer contacting Tbaytel to advise that he has been experiencing issues since then and no record of any calls within the last two months.
  
  Wireless network connectivity can be impacted by a variety of factors, including physical obstacles or topography, proximity to a cell site in a network, signal interference and network capacity, among other causes. Connectivity issues can also be related to a user’s own device compatibility or settings. It is for these reasons that service levels are not guaranteed as Tbaytel is not liable for interruptions, delays or errors and defects in transmission, as is stated in the Terms of Service of the customer’s wireless contract with Tbaytel.
  
  Tbaytel is committed to providing a positive experience to each of our customers. We have wireless network coverage expansion planned for the Devlin area in 2024; however, at this time, if the customer is still experiencing issues with his wireless service it is recommended that he call into our Technical Support department at ***** ******** or toll-free at ************** so the details of the issues he is experiencing can be properly assessed.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  Laura ******
  Regulatory Analyst
  Tbaytel

• Initial Complaint

  Date:19/01/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I was informed by a Tbaytel sales rep when shopping for a new cell phone, that my monthly phone bill was more than it should be, as I had paid off my phone and Tbaytel never adjusted my monthly bill. The Tbaytel sales rep quickly resolved the issue, decreasing my monthly bill, however when asked how long I had been paying the extra amount for a phone that was paid off, was not able* ** ******* to say. *** ***** *** ** **** ********* *** ****** **** **** ******* ****** ** ** **** ***** ** **** *** *** ******

  Business Response

  Date: 03/02/2023

  On December 19, 2022, Tbaytel received this complaint from the BBB, wherein the customer is alleging that Tbaytel is overcharging.  The customer indicated that it while shopping for a new cell phone that a Tbaytel Sales Rep advised her that her monthly phone bill was higher than it should have been, in light of the fact that the phone had been paid off without any adjustment to her account.  The customer was unable to identify how long the extra charges have been applied.  *** ******** *** ******** **** ******* ***** **** *** *** *****

  The complaint has been reviewed the complaint and as well as the customer's account and there was no indication that this customer has spoken with anyone in Customer Care, the applicable Tbaytel complaint process.

  When investigating the account, the customer completed a plan change from the 'Unlimited Canada 6GB' ($**) to the 'Super BYOD 6GB' ($**) as requested by an order placed at ***** ******* ********** ******** * ***** ********* ***** ******* back on September 14, 2022. Since that date, no one from Customer Care has touched her account. In addition, there are no calls from this customer to Tbaytel in which they spoke with a Service Advisor, Technical Support or the Tbaytel Store between September 1, 2022 - January 25, 2023. 

   

  The lacking of contact by the customer with Tbaytel, makes it difficult to respond to the complaint. It is necessary for customers to follow the prescribed steps of Tbaytel’s Complaint Process and contact Tbaytel’s Customer Care Team at 807-623-4400 or 1-800-264-9501.

   

  Yours truly,

  Robert *******

  Regulatory Analyst

  ********

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/02/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  Erinn ******

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/09/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I am Tbaytel prepaid mobile user with 20GB data (per year) addon. I am complaining about over data usage charge. Once the data is out, it has no warning or alert at all and then it will start charge from your balance until the balance is 0. It is not happened to me the first time. First time I found my balance was 0 and phone stopped working, I called them and they refunded me immediately. This time *** happened this July, and I called them several times , they insisted it is my responsibility, I just ordered 20GB addon, I didn't ask any extended data service , *** *** **** ***** ** ***** **** **** 

  Business Response

  Date: 03/10/2022

  October 3, 2022
  
  BBB of Manitoba and Northwest Ontario
  Subject:  Respond to Complaint – Customer Complaint # ********
  ** ********* ** ***** ******* ******** *** ********* ********* **** *** **** ** ** ******* ******* ****** **** **** **** **** **** ***** ******  * ** *********** ***** **** **** ***** *******  **** *** **** ** **** ** *** ** ******* ** ***** ** *** *** **** ** **** ****** **** **** ******* ***** *** ******* ** **  ** ** *** ******** ** ** *** ***** ***** ***** **** * ***** ** ******* *** * *** ***** ******* ********  * ****** **** *** **** ******** ** ************  **** **** *** ******** **** **** *** * ****** **** ******* ****** **** ******** ** ** ** *************** * **** ******* **** ****** * ****** *** *** ******** **** ******** *** *** ***** ** ***** **** ***** ******* ********** *           ******* ******* *** ****** ****** ******** **** ****** *** **** *****
  
  The customer, as has been noted, has prepaid service.  Our prepaid service platform is a self-service platform, whereby customers add their own usage buckets, change plans, add funds, etc.  Usage can be monitored online (the customer has access to this as seen by the usage records the customer provided with the complaint). Data alerts are only provided to our post-paid customers. (i.e. “you have reached 75% or 100% of your data plan”)
  
  The customer referenced an incident from October 2021, wherein the customer noted receipt of a refund.  At this time the customer called in and indicated that run out of data, but continued to use device and data with nothing in data bucket (customer should have added a 20GB data bucket) and so consumed the balance in account.  Tbaytel, as a one-time goodwill gesture credited the customer for the data used and charged for the 20GB. 
  The same thing happened again in July of this year and the customer again wanting the same treatment, - a refund.
  
  Highlights of Tbaytel’s review:
  Prepaid customers have a self-serve platform and they are responsible for own data buckets and monitoring;
  Data alerts are available only for post-paid customers, i.e. not applicable for prepaids;
  It has been explained to the customer, both in October 2021, and again in July of this year, how the system works on buckets.
  
  Based on our review of this complaint and having regard for our findings, our action not to refund in this case was the correct one.
  
  Yours truly
  Tbaytel