Utah Admin. Code 746-356-5

Current through Bulletin 2024-12, June 15, 2024
Section R746-356-5 - Customer Education, Notification, and Presubscription Contact Procedure
A. Customer Information -- Equal access customer instructional materials, forms, and notification letters developed by a LEC, shall be competitively neutral and unbiased as to the presubscription process. They shall clearly state the available PICs and a toll free contact number for each PIC. The proposed text of the first mailing letter shall be filed with the Commission and the Division at least 60 days prior to equal access implementation.
B. Customer Notification -- Customer notification of the initial availability of intraLATA equal access will be provided as follows:
1. For exchanges in which interLATA equal access balloting is required, the ballot information shall be expanded to provide customer instructions that will allow the customer to presubscribe to both an interLATA and an intraLATA PIC, including the LEC.
2. For exchanges in which interLATA equal access has previously been provided, the balloting procedure will not be required. The LEC will provide notification of the intraLATA equal access implementation, and request that the customers preselect their PIC by letter required by R746-356-5(A). The letter will be sent to all LEC customers by 1st Class Mail no earlier than 45 days and no later than 15 days prior to the scheduled implementation date for each exchange.
3. Customers applying for local exchange service after the initial equal access notification mailing(s), but before implementation of equal access, shall receive a copy of the notification letter from the LEC.
4. Each PIC will be responsible for providing the LEC(s) with a current toll free number(s) to be included in the initial customer equal access notification letter.
5. The LEC will not be required to modify the customer notification letter seven days prior to the first mailing for the purpose of including another PIC that did not file a bona fide request in time for the letter preparation.
C. Subsequent Customer Notification -- Subsequent to the equal access implementation of each exchange. The following procedures shall apply to all customer contacts and requests:
1. Customers applying for new local exchange service from the LEC shall be informed of the presubscription process and their choice of available PICs from a list that is referred to by the service representative in a rotational or random manner. This list must be constructed so that a LEC, and any of its subsidiaries, or affiliates, are not listed more than once, nor mentioned or written adjacent to one another. When a LEC and its subsidiary, or affiliate, have very similar names, the customer must be specifically advised as to the relationship between the entities.
2. Each new customer shall be required to select both an interLATA PIC and an intraLATA PIC. A customer who does not select a PIC(s) shall be informed that they will not be presubscribed to any toll provider, and will be required to utilize access codes when placing toll calls, until that customer selects a PIC.
3. When a customer requests more information about a specific PIC, other than the LEC, the LEC representative shall refer the caller to the PIC.
4. When a customer requests or advises the LEC representative of an address change, with or without a number change, the LEC shall assume that the existing PICs will not change for the new address, unless the customer voluntarily directs the LEC to do otherwise.
5. When a customer reports trouble in placing intraLATA toll calls, the LEC representative shall first determine whether the customer is presubscribed to a PIC. If so, the report will be handled as a service complaint pursuant to the procedure in effect between the LEC and the PIC. If the customer is not presubscribed, the customer will be asked to select a PIC in the manner of a new customer, per R746-356-5(C)(1).
6. LEC representatives may market their company's intraLATA service when handling "general service" calls with customers. A general service call is a call to the LEC requesting general information about the LEC's services, the establishment or removal of the LEC's services, billing inquiries, or calls relating to any other aspect of the services then provided to the customer by the LEC. General service calls do not include calls requesting a specific PIC change, address change, or telephone number change from existing customers.

Utah Admin. Code R746-356-5