Goto Section: 64.1110 | 64.1130 | Table of Contents
FCC 64.1120
Revised as of October 1, 2011
Goto Year:2010 |
2012
§ 64.1120 Verification of orders for telecommunications service.
(a) No telecommunications carrier shall submit or execute a change on
the behalf of a subscriber in the subscriber's selection of a provider
of telecommunications service except in accordance with the procedures
prescribed in this subpart. Nothing in this section shall preclude any
State commission from enforcing these procedures with respect to
intrastate services.
(1) No submitting carrier shall submit a change on the behalf of a
subscriber in the subscriber's selection of a provider of
telecommunications service prior to obtaining:
(i) Authorization from the subscriber, and
(ii) Verification of that authorization in accordance with the
procedures prescribed in this section. The submitting carrier shall
maintain and preserve records of verification of subscriber
authorization for a minimum period of two years after obtaining such
verification.
(2) An executing carrier shall not verify the submission of a change in
a subscriber's selection of a provider of telecommunications service
received from a submitting carrier. For an executing carrier,
compliance with the procedures described in this part shall be defined
as prompt execution, without any unreasonable delay, of changes that
have been verified by a submitting carrier.
(3) Commercial mobile radio services (CMRS) providers shall be excluded
from the verification requirements of this part as long as they are not
required to provide equal access to common carriers for the provision
of telephone toll services, in accordance with 47 U.S.C. 332(c)(8).
(b) Where a telecommunications carrier is selling more than one type of
telecommunications service ( e.g. , local exchange, intraLATA toll, and
interLATA toll), that carrier must obtain separate authorization from
the subscriber for each service sold, although the authorizations may
be obtained within the same solicitation. Each authorization must be
verified separately from any other authorizations obtained in the same
solicitation. Each authorization must be verified in accordance with
the verification procedures prescribed in this part.
(c) No telecommunications carrier shall submit a preferred carrier
change order unless and until the order has been confirmed in
accordance with one of the following procedures:
(1) The telecommunications carrier has obtained the subscriber's
written or electronically signed authorization in a form that meets the
requirements of § 64.1130; or
(2) The telecommunications carrier has obtained the subscriber's
electronic authorization to submit the preferred carrier change order.
Such authorization must be placed from the telephone number(s) on which
the preferred carrier is to be changed and must confirm the information
in paragraph (a)(1) of this section. Telecommunications carriers
electing to confirm sales electronically shall establish one or more
toll-free telephone numbers exclusively for that purpose. Calls to the
number(s) will connect a subscriber to a voice response unit, or
similar mechanism, that records the required information regarding the
preferred carrier change, including automatically recording the
originating automatic number identification; or
(3) An appropriately qualified independent third party has obtained, in
accordance with the procedures set forth in paragraphs (c)(3)(i)
through (c)(3)(iv) of this section, the subscriber's oral authorization
to submit the preferred carrier change order that confirms and includes
appropriate verification data ( e.g. , the subscriber's date of birth
or social security number). The independent third party must not be
owned, managed, controlled, or directed by the carrier or the carrier's
marketing agent; must not have any financial incentive to confirm
preferred carrier change orders for the carrier or the carrier's
marketing agent; and must operate in a location physically separate
from the carrier or the carrier's marketing agent.
(i) Methods of third party verification. Automated third party
verification systems and three-way conference calls may be used for
verification purposes so long as the requirements of paragraphs
(c)(3)(ii) through (c)(3)(iv) of this section are satisfied.
(ii) Carrier initiation of third party verification. A carrier or a
carrier's sales representative initiating a three-way conference call
or a call through an automated verification system must drop off the
call once the three-way connection has been established.
(iii) Requirements for content and format of third party verification.
Any description of the carrier change transaction by a third party
verifier must not be misleading, and all third party verification
methods shall elicit, at a minimum: The date of the verification; the
identity of the subscriber; confirmation that the person on the call is
authorized to make the carrier change; confirmation that the person on
the call wants to make the carrier change; confirmation that the person
on the call understands that a carrier change, not an upgrade to
existing service, bill consolidation, or any other misleading
description of the transaction, is being authorized; the names of the
carriers affected by the change (not including the name of the
displaced carrier); the telephone numbers to be switched; and the types
of service involved (including a brief description of a service about
which the subscriber demonstrates confusion regarding the nature of
that service). Except in Hawaii, any description of interLATA or long
distance service shall convey that it encompasses both international
and state-to-state calls, as well as some intrastate calls where
applicable. If the subscriber has additional questions for the
carrier's sales representative during the verification, the verifier
shall indicate to the subscriber that, upon completion of the
verification process, the subscriber will have authorized a carrier
change. Third party verifiers may not market the carrier's services by
providing additional information, including information regarding
preferred carrier freeze procedures.
(iv) Other requirements for third party verification. All third party
verifications shall be conducted in the same language that was used in
the underlying sales transaction and shall be recorded in their
entirety. In accordance with the procedures set forth in
64.1120(a)(1)(ii), submitting carriers shall maintain and preserve
audio records of verification of subscriber authorization for a minimum
period of two years after obtaining such verification. Automated
systems must provide consumers with an option to speak with a live
person at any time during the call.
(4) Any State-enacted verification procedures applicable to intrastate
preferred carrier change orders only.
(d) Telecommunications carriers must provide subscribers the option of
using one of the authorization and verification procedures specified in
§ 64.1120(c) in addition to an electronically signed authorization and
verification procedure under 64.1120(c)(1).
(e) A telecommunications carrier may acquire, through a sale or
transfer, either part or all of another telecommunica- tions carrier's
subscriber base without obtaining each subscriber's authorization and
verification in accordance with § 64.1120(c), provided that the
acquiring carrier complies with the following streamlined procedures. A
telecommunications carrier may not use these streamlined procedures for
any fraudulent purpose, including any attempt to avoid liability for
violations under part 64, subpart K of the Commission rules.
(1) No later than 30 days before the planned transfer of the affected
subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the acquiring
carrier, the acquiring carrier shall file with the Commission's Office
of the Secretary a letter notification in CC Docket No. 00-257
providing the names of the parties to the transaction, the types of
telecommunications services to be provided to the affected subscribers,
and the date of the transfer of the subscriber base to the acquiring
carrier. In the letter notification, the acquiring carrier also shall
certify compliance with the requirement to provide advance subscriber
notice in accordance with § 64.1120(e)(3), with the obligations
specified in that notice, and with other statutory and Commission
requirements that apply to this streamlined process. In addition, the
acquiring carrier shall attach a copy of the notice sent to the
affected subscribers.
(2) If, subsequent to the filing of the letter notification with the
Commission required by § 64.1120(e)(1), any material changes to the
required information should develop, the acquiring carrier shall file
written notification of these changes with the Commission no more than
10 days after the transfer date announced in the prior notification.
The Commission reserves the right to require the acquiring carrier to
send an additional notice to the affected subscribers regarding such
material changes.
(3) Not later than 30 days before the transfer of the affected
subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the acquiring
carrier, the acquiring carrier shall provide written notice to each
affected subscriber of the information specified. The acquiring carrier
is required to fulfill the obligations set forth in the advance
subscriber notice. The advance subscriber notice shall be provided in a
manner consistent with 47 U.S.C. 255 and the Commission's rules
regarding accessibility to blind and visually-impaired consumers, 47
CFR 6.3, 6.5 of this chapter. The following information must be
included in the advance subscriber notice:
(i) The date on which the acquiring carrier will become the
subscriber's new provider of telecommunications service,
(ii) The rates, terms, and conditions of the service(s) to be provided
by the acquiring carrier upon the subscriber's transfer to the
acquiring carrier, and the means by which the acquiring carrier will
notify the subscriber of any change(s) to these rates, terms, and
conditions.
(iii) The acquiring carrier will be responsible for any carrier change
charges associated with the transfer, except where the carrier is
acquiring customers by default, other than through bankruptcy, and
state law requires the exiting carrier to pay these costs;
(iv) The subscriber's right to select a different preferred carrier for
the telecommunications service(s) at issue, if an alternative carrier
is available,
(v) All subscribers receiving the notice, even those who have arranged
preferred carrier freezes through their local service providers on the
service(s) involved in the transfer, will be transferred to the
acquiring carrier, unless they have selected a different carrier before
the transfer date; existing preferred carrier freezes on the service(s)
involved in the transfer will be lifted; and the subscribers must
contact their local service providers to arrange a new freeze.
(vi) Whether the acquiring carrier will be responsible for handling any
complaints filed, or otherwise raised, prior to or during the transfer
against the selling or transferring carrier, and
(vii) The toll-free customer service telephone number of the acquiring
carrier.
[ 65 FR 47691 , Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 66 FR 12892 , Mar. 1, 2001; 66 FR 28124 , May 22, 2001; 68 FR 19159 , Apr. 18, 2003; 70 FR 12611 , Mar.
15, 2005; 73 FR 13149 , Mar. 12, 2008]
Goto Section: 64.1110 | 64.1130
Goto Year: 2010 |
2012
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