A longtime Telus customer says he’s angry after his monthly phone, internet, and television bill didn’t reflect a lower rate offered by the telecom giant.
“I just get so furious,” Brian Carson told Consumer Matters.
The B.C. senior says that back in January 2025, he reached out to the telecom provider to complain about increases in his monthly bill.
Carson says that, at the time, the Telus agent had promised him a lower rate going forward. “$123 for everything plus taxes,” Carson said.
However, Carson says his next monthly Telus bill didn’t reflect the new rate. “I was flabbergasted. What are they doing? We agreed on a price,” said Carson. “Stick to the agreed price. It’s a verbal contract.”
Carson refused to pay the full amount and only paid the rate he says he was offered by Telus in January. After he says he was unable to resolve the issue on his own, he reached out to Consumer Matters for help.
In an email to Consumer Matters, Telus stated:
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“Mr. Carson’s bill has fluctuated in recent months due to a few factors, such as him making more long-distance calls, promotional discounts expiring, outstanding balances carried over from one month to the next, and an agent error when adding new promotional discounts to his account. We have spoken to Mr. Carson and confirmed we’re honouring the new promotions, and will ensure his bills reflect that promise moving forward.”
Carson says Telus has since offered him an even lower rate on his monthly internet, tv, and home phone bill at $113 plus tax.
“Extremely appreciate it that you helped me. I didn’t know what to do,” Carson told Consumer Matters.
Earlier this year, a report by Canada’s telecom industry watchdog, The Commission for Complaints for Telecom and Television services, said it received a record number of complaints last year – up 38 per cent from 2023. Most of the complaints involved billing issues, prices and service quality.
Geoff White, executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, a not for profit which protects consumers in areas like telecommunications says billing issues year over year are the predominant source of complaints.
“My advice always is get something in writing before you agree to it and from a systemic perspective we want more clear disclosure rules and we want customers to get that information before they sign off on anything,” White said.
Carson says he’s happy he has a lower rate, but says he’s exhausted by the time and effort it took to get answers.
“It’s just a shame, particularly older people like myself, that we have to reach out to a third-party to help us get what we are entitled to,” he said..
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