Consumer protection agency files class action suit against Megacable

The federal consumer protection agency Profeco has filed a class-action lawsuit against the Mexican telecommunications company Megacable due to increasing consumer complaints about the company’s recurrent service failures.

The legal action demands that Megacable deliver its contractually obligated services on behalf of more than 4 million subscribers, under the premise that failure to do so violates the user’s human right to access to communication and information technologies. 

Under Mexico’s Consumer’s Federal Protection Law, Profeco may sue whenever the constitutional rights of a group of consumers are harmed; Mexicans’ right to access communications and information technology is protected by the nation’s constitution. 

In a statement, Profeco said that among users’ main complaints were the frequent loss of connectivity for long periods and undue charges despite Megacable’s service outages.

According to the agency, Megacable is the telecommunications and cable television operator that had accumulated the most complaints per million subscribers in recent months – an increase that was noticed across different states in Profeco’s Consumer Defense Offices. The Federal Institute of Telecommunications also reported that Megacable ranks second among Mexico’s companies with the most complaints reported as of June this year. 

Internet service failures were the main complaint, followed by disagreements about charges, pending balances and outage reimbursements.

Earlier this year, the federal agency targeted AT&T México with a class-action lawsuit. In May, the agency sued the company over a subsidized equipment charge. Profeco objected to an annual 225-peso (US $11) charge to AT&T México customers acquiring devices by paying in monthly installments. 

Profeco and AT&T México later reached an agreement in which AT&T agreed to pay back the charges to 844,000 users. Those who had stopped using the company were entitled to compensation of up to 3,000 pesos (US $150), while existing users were to receive a bonus 3-gigabyte data bundle. 

With reports from Reporte Índigo and El Financiero