AT&T says that it wants to improve its customer service, and one way in which it is going about that is by crediting customers for internet outages and long wait times on the phone.
The company said Wednesday that going forward, customers will receive a full-day bill credit for any fiber outage longer than 20 minutes or wireless outage of more than one hour. If a customer calling into its telephone support lines has to wait on hold for more than five minutes, they will receive a $5 Visa gift card.
That is not much, but the costs could add up for AT&T and incentivize it to improve its operations. The initiative is reminiscent of laws in Europe that require airlines to compensate passengers for delays, regulation which some research suggests has improved on-time arrivals.
AT&T experienced several widespread network outages in 2024, which can be incredibly disruptive in a world that relies on constant connectivity. Job interviews over Zoom can be cut short, homework has to wait, and of course sports broadcasts that are increasingly moving to streaming can be interrupted at just the wrong moment.
It does not help that internet service providers like AT&T have a stronghold in much of the U.S.—in some parts of the country, especially rural areas, consumers have only one or two internet providers to choose from. Services like SpaceX’s Starlink are helping with the problem somewhat, and the FCC has continued to deploy capital in developing rural broadband as part of its Rural Broadband Accountability Plan.
According to the New York Times, the new policy from AT&T is part of a $750 million investment the company has been making in customer service over the past four years. AT&T’s chief marketing and growth officer Kellyn Smith Kenny said that outages across its network have not been more common in recent years.
AT&T is also planning to launch a dedicated website where customers will be able to check on the status of outages so they do not have to take to social media to see whether or not they are alone.
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