§ 15-65. Customer service standards.

(a)

Except for more stringent standards set forth herein or in the franchise agreement, the grantee shall comply with the minimum customer service standards established by federal regulation which are hereby incorporated by reference.

(b)

The grantee shall credit subscribers for outages in the system which result in loss of picture or sound on one or more channels for more than 24 hours, subject to the following:

(1)

Subscribers must have notified the grantee by phone or in writing of any such outage, unless the grantee has actual or constructive knowledge of the outage, and

(2)

Subscribers shall receive a credit for each calendar day or part thereof during which service is out. A grantee may, at its option, provide a subscriber with a rebate rather than a credit on the subscriber's bill to fulfill the requirements of this subsection.

(c)

Excluding conditions beyond the reasonable control of the grantee, the grantee shall respond to service calls and complaints promptly. The grantee shall maintain a repair force of service personnel capable of responding to subscriber requests for service under normal operating conditions within the following time frames, unless a subscriber requests a different, more convenient date:

(1)

For any complaints of loss of sound or a picture on one or more channels, on the same day if the grantee is notified by 2:00 p.m.

(2)

Within 24 hours after notification for all other service calls.

(d)

Upon the request of the subscriber, the grantee shall provide the following equipment at the subscriber's reasonable cost:

(1)

A/B (input selector) switches to allow switchover to subscriber's antenna;

(2)

A parental lock to allow the subscriber to block a specified cable service or channel; and

(3)

Devices to insure adequate access to cable television service for hearing-impaired persons.

(e)

The grantee shall maintain on all fully constructed or rebuilt systems equipment capable of providing standby power for headend, transmission and trunk amplifiers for a minimum of two hours.

(f)

The grantee shall complete at least 95 percent of all standard installations requiring service drops shorter than 125 feet and at least 90 percent of all standard installations requiring service drops shorter than 200 feet within seven business days after the order for the installation has been placed. At least 90 percent of all service drops that are temporarily placed above ground will be buried within ten business days of the date of installation, provided the grantee has been able to obtain all necessary easements or other consents and has not been delayed by conditions beyond its reasonable control. All drops will be machine buried to a depth of at least six inches. If the county receives a complaint of noncompliance with this section, the grantee shall make information available to the county which demonstrates compliance with this section upon written request from the county.

(g)

All field employees, including subcontractors, who deal directly with subscribers must carry identification to be displayed upon request indicating their employment with the grantee.

(h)

The grantee shall use equipment which is capable of monitoring and recording telephone answering standards established by federal regulations.

(i)

Customer service center and bill payment locations will be open for transactions Monday through Friday during normal business hours. Additionally, based on community needs and customer demand, the grantee will schedule supplemental hours on weekdays and/or weekends during which these centers will be open as needed.

(j)

The grantee shall provide at least five days' written notice before discontinuing service due to nonpayment and shall not terminate service for nonpayment where the nonpayment is for service not yet provided.

(k)

The grantee shall grant customers a three-day right of rescission for ordering cable services, except that such right of rescission shall end upon initiation or installation of the service, whether physically or electronically, on the customer's premises.

(l)

The grantee shall minimize system service interruptions to the greatest extent practicable.

(Code 1978, § 7-25)

(Code 1978, § 7-25)