Watsonville Municipal Code Art. 6 Service Standards

This Article may be cited as the “Customer Service Regulations.”

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) The Grantee shall provide a conveniently located business office within the Franchise Area. At such office the company shall provide Adequate Staffing to serve the public and Customers not less than eight (8) hours per Business Day, and to provide at least the following services to Customers at the local business office:

(1) Accept payments;

(2) Exchange or accept converters or other equipment;

(3) Respond to inquiries; and

(4) Schedule service or technical calls.

(b) There shall be a toll-free telephone access, staffed with one or more Customer Service Representative to provide twenty-four (24) hours referral information, including weekends and holidays.

(c) Customer Service Representatives shall be adequately trained to have the capability to provide Referral Information without limitation.

(1) For purposes of documenting the Subscriber’s communications with the Customer Service Representative, the Customer Service Representative shall provide the Subscriber with his or her true name and/or his or her Customer Service Representative number.

(2) Under normal operating conditions, Telephone Answer Time by a Customer Service Representative shall not exceed thirty (30) seconds, and busy signals shall not occur on more than three (3%) percent of calls. If a call needs to be transferred, transfer time shall not exceed thirty (30) seconds. These requirements shall be attained not less than thirteen point five (13.5) days out of any possible consecutive fifteen (15) day period.

(d) If a Subscriber requests to speak with a Customer Service Supervisor and none is available, the Customer Service Supervisor shall return the telephone call of the Subscriber within four (4) Business Hours. If the Customer Service Supervisor does not achieve a direct contact with the Subscriber on the return call, the Customer Service Supervisor shall leave, in any message for the Subscriber, a direct dial or extension number which will reach the Customer Service Supervisor for the subsequent use of the Subscriber.

(1) Grantee telephone numbers shall be listed in the directories published by all local exchange telephone companies operating within the Watsonville area, as well as on all Subscriber bills and advertisements.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) Standard installation will be performed within seven (7) Business Days after an order has been placed by a Subscriber. “Standard” installation is a connection or reconnection of cable service as defined in Article 4 of this Chapter.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) The Subscriber may terminate service at any time. Said termination, shall be effective upon the earlier of: (1) termination of service by the Grantee and return of any equipment in possession of Subscriber, or (2) the expiration of five (5) Business Days following the Subscriber’s request for termination. Disabled persons and persons unable to travel to the Business Office may have the Grantee pick up cable service equipment owned by the Grantee at no charge, which pick-up shall occur within five (5) Business Days following the Subscriber’s request for termination and shall occur at a time reasonably convenient to the Subscriber. The Grantee may provide the Subscriber with mailers for postage prepaid return of the equipment owned by the Grantee in lieu of the foregoing pick-up procedure.

(b) Upon the termination of Subscriber’s Cable Service, the Subscriber shall have the option, in the sole discretion of the Subscriber:

(1) To require the Grantee to remove all wires and other unused Cable Service equipment installed by the Grantee in connection with the original installation; and

(2) To require the Grantee to leave all Cable Service wiring in place and undisturbed, provided that the Grantee shall have the right to disable the Cable Service at the joinder of the public right-of-way (and at no other place) in order to forestall diversion of Cable Service.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) The Grantee shall maintain a sufficient number of repair technicians and related support staff, equipment and facilities to enable the Grantee to respond to a Subscriber request for handling Service Calls in all reasonably anticipated circumstances within the following time limitations:

(1) For System Outages: response for repair shall occur within two (2) hours, including weekends and holidays, after the receipt of the first notice of a System Outage.

(2) For an Isolated Outage: response for repair shall occur within six (6) Business Hours after the receipt of a Service Call from a Subscriber.

(3) For Poor Signal Quality: response for evaluation and/or repair shall occur within twenty-four (24) Business Hours after the receipt of a request for repair and/or rectification of such Poor Signal Quality.

(b) When scheduling a Service Call, the Grantee shall identify to the Subscriber at the time of scheduling a specific date on a Business Day and either a specific appointment time or a block of time within a specified period of four (4) Business Hours. The Grantee may schedule Service Calls and other installation activities outside of Business Hours for the express convenience of the Subscriber. The Grantee may not cancel an appointment with a Subscriber after the close of business on the Business Day prior to the scheduled appointment. If the Grantee representative is running late for an appointment with a Subscriber and will not be able to keep the appointment as scheduled, Grantee shall contact the Subscriber and shall reschedule the appointment, as necessary, at a time during the Business Day which is convenient for the Subscriber.

(1) Service call alternative. Instead of a Service Call, the Franchise Agreement may allow for the Subscriber to return and to replace converters and/or other Cable Service equipment through the use of the Business Office at no charge to the Subscriber for a Service Call.

(2) The Grantee shall be deemed to have responded to a request for a Service Call for the purposes of determining compliance with time limitations of this section when a qualified Grantee technician arrives at the Subscriber’s location and begins work in response to the request, provided that the qualified Grantee technician continues such work without cessation to completion and restoration of service. In case of a Subscriber not being home when the technician arrives, the technician shall leave written notification of who and when to call to reschedule. Two (2) successive failures of the Subscriber to be present at the appointed time shall excuse the Grantee of the duty to respond within twenty-four (24) hours of the receipt of a call.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

For each failure of the Grantee to meet any scheduled appointment within the parameters specified hereby, the Grantee must offer the Subscriber so affected, in the sole discretion of the Subscriber after full disclosure a choice of either:

(a) A credit to the Subscriber’s then current billing balance in an amount equal to the greater of: (i) Twenty and no/100ths ($20.00) Dollars; or (ii) the then current rate for one month of Basic Service; or

(b) With respect to service connection or repair appointments, an opportunity to elect to seek remedies under California Civil Code Section 1722, if applicable.

(c) The Subscriber shall not be deemed to have made an election unless and until the Grantee shall demonstrate that it has informed the Subscriber that, by his/her acceptance of the credit specified above, the Subscriber intends to waive his/her remedies under the Civil Code for the missed appointment.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

A Subscriber shall not be charged for a Service Call unless the service request can be demonstrated by the Grantee to be unrelated to the Grantee’s Cable System or to be proximately caused by Subscriber negligence.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) Upon notification by a Subscriber of a System or Isolated Outage, the Grantee shall provide a credit equal to at least one day’s proration of the Grantee’s total monthly charges (for all levels and types of service and equipment) for each day or portion thereof for: (i) each System or Isolated Outage of all Cable Service exceeding twelve (12) hours accumulating within a twenty-four (24) hour period; and (ii) for one day’s proration of the Subscriber’s monthly charge for a Premium Service for each outage of such Premium Service exceeding four (4) hours. Credits for service will be issued by the Grantee during the Subscriber’s next billing cycle following the outage, or if a request is made for credit pursuant to Section 3-11.608(b), then following determination that the credit is warranted under that Section.

(b) A Subscriber may identify a System or Isolated Outage justifying a credit when the Grantee has not otherwise identified the Isolated or System Outage. The Grantee shall respond to such an identification of System or Isolated Outage pursuant to the procedures required for resolution of disputed bills.

(c) If a refund or deposit return is due to a Subscriber at the time of a service termination, the refund check or deposit return will be issued promptly, but no later than forty-five (45) days after service termination.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) A Subscriber may not be required to pay for Cable Service more than one (1) month in advance of receiving such service.

(b) Every Subscriber bill shall be clear, concise and understandable and shall itemize separately each fee or charge comprising the total thereof for: (i) each category of service; (ii) each piece of equipment for which a charge is imposed; and (iii) any other fees to which a Subscriber has agreed in writing and the arithmetic necessary to calculate the bill. The bill must also specify:

(1) A due date for the payment thereof;

(2) The amount of the Late Charge, if any, which may be imposed by the Grantee for payments received after the due date;

(3) The Closing Date; and the amount(s) of any payments or credits applicable through the Closing Date; and

(4) The amount of any unpaid charge from any earlier bill not yet paid in full.

(c) The Grantee may disconnect service to a Subscriber for nonpayment of amounts due only after Grantee has provided to the Subscriber a written notice of its intent to do so. The Grantee will attempt to make contact with the Subscriber prior to disconnection of Cable Service. The notice shall specify, at a minimum, the following:

(1) The proposed date on or after which Cable Service may be terminated;

(2) The total payment required to avoid termination;

(3) The total amount in arrears if that amount differs from the payment required to avoid termination; and

(4) The telephone number and office hours of a Customer Service Representative authorized to explain, adjust and resolve the bill to avoid termination of Cable Service.

The Grantee may not disconnect service other than during business hours.

(d) The Grantee may not disclose, refer, enter or cause, or allow to be disclosed, referred or entered (“referral”), any negative report to any consumer credit reporting agency, association or bureau relating to the payment performance of a Subscriber until the Grantee or its agent has provided a written notice of its intent to do so to the Subscriber. The notice shall specify, at a minimum, the following:

(1) The date and nature of the proposed referral;

(2) The total payment required to avoid disconnection or reporting;

(3) The total amount in arrears if that amount differs from the payment required to avoid the referral;

(4) The telephone number and office hours of a Customer Service Representative authorized to explain, adjust and resolve such proposed referral; and

(5) A pre-addressed envelope or address label with which to mail any payment or response to the Grantee.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

(a) The Grantee shall provide each Subscriber at the times and in the circumstances specified in this Chapter with a General Rate and Programming Disclosure (“Disclosure”). The Disclosure shall contain at a minimum all of the programming bundling, tiers and combinations, equipment, and services currently available, and the rates and charges which apply thereto, including without limitation, all installation charges;

(1) The amount(s) of any required deposit(s) and the Grantee’s detailed policies and procedures relating to deductions or offsets therefrom;

(2) The Grantee’s billing policies and complaint resolution procedures;

(3) The Grantee’s telephone number, Business Hours, street address and mailing address, including without limitation, the address to which complaints and inquiries may be directed, and a telephone number;

(4) The full extent of the Subscriber’s liability for Grantee equipment in the event of loss, damage, or destruction thereof;

(5) The charges imposed by the Grantee related to a Subscriber’s account, including without limitation, fees and charges for returned checks, and late charges;

(6) The Subscriber’s right to refer problems, inquiries or complaints to the Grantor at its designated address and telephone number and to request complete copies of this Chapter from the Grantor;

(7) Installation and service maintenance policies; and

(8) Instructions on how to use the cable service.

(9) The Grantee shall provide each affected Subscriber with the Disclosure prior to any binding agreement between Grantee with Subscriber and prior to any installation of Cable Service by the Grantee.

(b) Subscribers will be notified of any changes in rates, programming services or channel positions as soon as possible in writing. Notice must be given to Subscribers a minimum of thirty (30) days in advance of such changes if the change is within the control of the Grantee. The Grantee shall not be required to provide prior notice of any rate change that is the result of a regulatory fee, franchise fee, or any other fee, tax, assessment, or charge of any kind imposed by any Federal agency, State or the City on the transaction between the Grantee and the Subscriber.

(c) All Grantee representatives dealing with the public shall have identification badges identifying the Grantee, the representative’s name with a current picture, and a telephone number to call to authenticate the representative’s identity and affiliation. Field personnel shall prominently display identification badges at all times when providing Cable Service to Subscribers.

(d) Within ninety (90) days after the effective date of a Franchise, the Grantee shall file with the Grantor a copy of its written procedures for receiving, acting upon, and resolving Subscriber complaints. The procedures shall prescribe the manner in which a Subscriber may submit a complaint and the time within which the Grantee commits to investigate and resolve such complaints.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)

Additional service consumer protection standards and responses by Grantee to Subscriber complaints not otherwise provided for in this Chapter may be established in the Franchise Agreement, and the Grantee shall comply with such standards in the operation of the Cable System. A verified and continuing pattern of material noncompliance may be deemed a breach of the Franchise.

(§ 1, Ord. 1054-98 C-M, eff. July 9, 1998)