Contracts with operators are long, and hardly anyone reads them in full. A few rules apply no matter what they say, because the Electronic Communications Act sets them.
Bills and services that don’t add up
The bill shows a service you did not order. Complain to the operator without undue delay, no later than two months after delivery of the bill. Pay the amount in the meantime, because a complaint does not postpone the due date (Section 64(8)). We describe how to do it in the article The operator charges for a service you did not order? What the law says.
The internet or the signal was down for a week. You can complain about the service itself, not just the bill.
The operator must handle the complaint within one month of delivery (Section 64(10)). If it finds in your favour, it must return the price difference no later than one month after handling the complaint (Section 64(11)). Note from when until when the service was down, and keep the fault-report numbers.
The operator charges for a bill by email. An internet or phone operator must provide you with the bill in electronic form free of charge (Section 64(2)).
Contract changes and price increases
The operator changes the terms or raises the price. It must notify you no later than one month in advance. You may then terminate the contract without a fee within one month of delivery of the notice. This does not apply when the change is purely to your benefit, purely administrative, or forced by a change in the law (Section 63b(5)).
The contract renewed itself. After automatic renewal you may terminate it at any time, free of charge, with a notice period of at most one month (Section 63b(3)).
You took a new phone or a TV set with the tariff and the contract was "extended". If you add a supplementary service or a device from the same operator to the contract, the original term of the contract is not extended by that, unless you expressly agreed to it (Section 63c(3)). Watch the checkboxes when you order in the app.
You want to leave a fixed-term contract early. After the first three months from the conclusion of the contract, the operator may not charge you anything for early termination. In the first three months it may demand at most one-twentieth of the flat-rate charges or the agreed minimum monthly payments remaining until the end of the contract (Section 63b(8)).
You send the notice of termination yourself, and a form or an email under the operator’s terms is usually enough.
Number transfer to another operator
You were without a signal for several days during a number transfer. During the transfer of the number you may be without the service for at most one working day (Section 34(6)). The day of the transfer is also the day the contract with the old operator ends (Section 34(7)), so it is not to charge you for any further days.
What to watch out for
- Pay the disputed amount during the complaint. A complaint does not postpone payment, and only the Czech Telecommunication Office (Český telekomunikační úřad) may decide on an exception.
- Leaving without a fee when the price rises does not apply to everything. If you took a discounted phone with the tariff and you keep it, the operator may demand a proportionate part of it (Section 63b(7)).
- The time limits are short. Two months for a complaint and one month to give notice after a price increase pass quickly.
What to do next
Is the operator charging you for something you did not want, or was the service down? Describe your situation to Legamik and Legamik will prepare a complaint citing the specific provisions of the Electronic Communications Act. It will also watch the two-month time limit. You send the letter yourself.
Legamik is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. In complex disputes we recommend consulting a lawyer.