MTN’s made it super easy to alter usage curbs for “customer convenience”. But this also means anyone with access to your device can do so, warns Georgina Crouth.
Cellphones have become such a must-have accessory that it’s difficult to imagine a time before them. Just how did we get by?
Now there are apps for everything. You can call anyone whenever, wherever, have unfettered access to the internet, shop online, do your banking, play games on your device and even monitor your home security from your phone.
The age of take-up also seems to be getting younger and younger. In Tech-Savvy Parenting, Nikki Bush and Arthur Goldstuck’s fabulous book about raising children in the digital world that was released back in 2014, they cite Elizabeth Englander’s study in Massachusetts among 20 000 children which found a fifth of 8-year-olds already have phones. More recent studies put that age creep at just 6.
That’s a big risk and responsibility to place in the hands of a small child who has probably only just started school, is too immature to understand the internet and is unlikely to be able to read properly.
Experts say age should not be the sole determiner: maturity is what matters, but delaying device use is optimal.
The pressure is certainly on for parents to get cellphones for their children: from both safety and social perspectives. We want our children to be able to get hold of us when they need to and let’s face it, they do eventually wear you down.
Nosi Mzamo waited until her daughter was 14: a reasonable age considering the rush to give children phones.
She explained: “I took a contract with MTN on April 17 this year. I took two phones and the second one was for my 14-year-old daughter. I signed contracts for both phones with a set limit of zero so that when the contract airtime and data are depleted, we don’t go over the set limit.
“A month later my bill had ballooned to R20 000 and now it’s at R39 000 as my daughter changed the limit from zero to R19 000 by using a 141 code.
“I trusted MTN to activate the limit as agreed on. How could MTN allow a limit change without informing me - the person who signed for the contract?
“MTN awarded the contract based on my credit-worthiness, and there is no way I can afford to pay a telephone bill of R19 000 on a monthly basis.
“How did they then go above what I can afford without doing proper credit checks? What freaks me out is the fact that they let the bill go on to the second invoice. MTN’s systems should have stopped and alerted me of such irregularities.”
Mzamo didn’t take the phone away from her daughter after that first R20 000 bill and the account went to R39 000. Then, MTN handed her over to lawyers and the cost escalated.
Just how does this happen, she wanted to know, because affordability should have been factored in. Since last year September, affordability assessments became requirements under the amended National Credit Act.
This placed a stricter requirement on credit providers - at the time of entering into a new credit agreement - to conduct affordability assessments.
However, this is not a credit agreement: it’s a monthly service agreement. When service providers do credit assessments, it is for their own risk-management. They’re not registered as credit providers.
But this doesn't vindicate them: it should simply not be allowed under the Consumer Protection Act because it puts consumers at a huge financial disadvantage and risk.
Mzamo’s case is not unique: on the Afternoon Drive show on 702, MTN general manager for branded channels, Gaba Majola, told Xolani Gwala in response to a caller’s complaint: “The credit affordability is determined when the customer applies and initiates the contract.
“For convenience and customer experience, we make the usage limit changes convenient; it can be done on the phone, either using the USSD string or using the My MTN app, which is something (customers) are told when negotiating the contract.”
That’s just too easy: by punching in the USSD code (technology that allows users to access services through short codes), anyone with access to your phone can get you into a whole lot of trouble.
I asked MTN about this and they admitted there was a problem.
“MTN acknowledges that the customer incurred an exorbitant bill due to the daughter increasing their customer usage limit without the knowledge or authorisation of the primary user. MTN does not have a functionality where the primary user is notified of a change in the subscriber usage limit by the secondary user,” a statement said.
“MTN is working on a solution that will require the primary user to authorise any requests to amend or adjust the usage limit that has been initially set at the commencement of a contract.
“In the interim, customers are urged to monitor usage on secondary lines linked to their contract in order to avoid bill shock. MTN and the aggrieved customer are working on an amicable solution to this matter.”
Mzamo came back to me to say MTN has dramatically reduced the bill, which is good news. Her daughter has learnt a lesson: her phone was taken away for a while and is now loaded monthly on a pay-as-you-go basis.
However, this case is unlikely to be an isolated issue and if MTN doesn’t act swiftly, many more consumers will be caught similarly.
You have been warned.
Wise up. Here’s how!
Don’t ignore the SMSes: Cellular networks send SMSes to warn customers that they’ve depleted (or are about to) their data and call limits. They’re not always accurate but it’s best to check.
Keep it simple: Children really don’t need smartphones (even if it’s your old device). Unfettered access to the internet exposes them to cyber-bullying and content that’s inappropriate. Rather get them simple, “dumbphones” that only allow phone calls and SMSes.
No need: Avoid taking contracts out for a child. Rather teach them to monitor their own usage by giving them pay-as-you-go options. That way, when the data’s run out or they can’t make any further calls, they’ll be more cautious about their usage the following month.
Set boundaries: Device use in children has been linked to issues with delayed gratification and attention. Most experts agree that parents should avoid usage for as long as possible. Once children are allowed to use devices, watch them closely - it’s not only about the content but also about the time they’re spending on those devices.
* Georgina Crouth is a consumer watchdog with serious bite. Write to her at [email protected]
** Follow on Georgina Crouth on Twitter: @askgeorgie
The Star