NCA warns of ‘slamming and cramming’

TELECOMS

Ghana’s telecoms regulator has warned phone users of various forms of mis-charging by operators.

The NCA says in a new warning that with new competition in the market, operators have become aggressive in the quest to maintain its market share and profits. The operators use variety of sales and marketing strategies to gain customers and profits and while the majority of these are carried out responsibly, some operators may attempt to gain customers through dishonest activities such as mis-selling, mis-informing and mis-charging.

NCA says there are various forms of mis-selling, such as slamming and cramming.

Slamming is switching from one network to another without the consumer’s knowledge. In some cases, consumers only become aware of this when they attempt to recharge.

Cramming is the illegal practice where operators place unauthorised or deceptive charges on consumers bills. Consumers are being tricked to pay for services that you did not order. 

Cramming may include regulated local telephone service features such as call waiting or caller ID, caller tones which are offered by operators, that one did not consent to or were misled about their actual cost.

NCA advises consumers to complain to their operators if the have fallen victim to these practices, and to escalate their complaint to the NCA if it is not resolved.