Telstra failed to meet its obligations to provide priority assistance to vulnerable customers, according to the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

As a condition of its carrier licence, Telstra is required to provide priority assistance to customers who have a life-threatening medical condition.

Once these customers are identified, telcos must have systems in place to provide them with additional levels of service.

ACMA found Telstra dropped the ball across a number of tasks, including a failure to send priority assistance application forms; to initiate ‘emergency medical request’ procedures when required to do so; and to undertake testing of a phone service if two faults are reported over a three-month period.

“Some of these customers were having problems with their Telstra fixed line service at the same time as dealing with significant medical issues,” ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said.

“These are some of Telstra’s most vulnerable customers and the telco must have adequate systems in place to make sure these important obligations are always met.”

Under the court-enforceable undertaking, Telstra is required to implement new systems to address these deficiencies, and to increased the monitoring of staff who handle priority assistance communications.

If Telstra fails to comply, the ACMA will commence Federal Court proceedings.