Eir takes on extra staff as ComReg chases it on complaints

Telco says it has increased customer support team numbers in response to issues

ComReg said there had been a noticeable increase in complaints during the Covid crisis. Photograph: iStock
ComReg said there had been a noticeable increase in complaints during the Covid crisis. Photograph: iStock

The communications regulator confirmed it has been in contact with Eir regarding a "noticeable increase" in customer complaints during the Covid crisis.

The news comes as ComReg was this week accused of being "toothless, useless and fruitless" over its inability to force the telco to address telephone faults.

Speaking in the Dáil on Monday, Independent TD for Tipperary Mattie McGrath also criticised Eir, claiming that the company had little interest in restoring services with many customers being kept waiting for an hour when calling the company to report faults.

“They have no respect for their customers...they don’t have the staff on the ground, and they don’t have the interest [in repairing faults],” he claimed.

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“There is no interest in serving the public, all they want is the moolah,” Mr McGrath added.

Actively monitoring

ComReg said it was actively monitoring complaints and said it had experienced a “noticeable increase in the number of contacts from Eir customers who are having difficulty contacting the company and/or resolving their specific issue.”

In a statement, Eir apologised to customers for the recent increase in call wait times. It said managing its call centres had been challenging during the pandemic with more than 400 agents working remotely.

It added it has just hired 60 new members to its care team since last month with more to be added in the weeks ahead.

Charlie Taylor

Charlie Taylor

Charlie Taylor is a former Irish Times business journalist