Optus will not be giving customers any compensation after major outage – as details emerge about CEO’s lavish lifestyle and series of blunders at the helm of the company
Optus bosses have said they will not compensate customers for the biggest communications outage in Australia’s history.
More than 10 million people and businesses were left in disarray on Wednesday after the telecom provider’s network went down at around 4am, leaving customers unable to connect to the internet or make or receive calls.
Optus chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin, 46, then created a PR disaster of her own when she went missing for seven hours as essential services and businesses struggled to cope.
It took more than twelve hours before services were finally restored.
Ms Bayer Rosmarin said last night that she understood how many people depended on connectivity and indicated that the company would consider how to compensate them.
“We are now starting to think about ways we can thank our customers for their patience as we work through the outage today and reward them for their loyalty to Optus,” she said.
“We will certainly consider every option as we turn our attention to the way we work with our customers now that services have been restored.”
But Ms Bayer Rosmarin and managing director of customer solutions Matt Williams have since told media that compensating customers for the outage period is off the table because “reimbursing people for one day is probably less than $2.”
When asked about companies paying higher rates for the service and not being able to make sales, Mr Williams said the same applied, that they would only be eligible for a small refund for the outage period.
“We are not talking about compensation,” he said.
Kelly Bayer Rosmarin (pictured) has been CEO of Optus since April 1, 2020, but most people only hear her name when the company becomes embroiled in a PR disaster
Business and personal customers were without access to essential phone and internet services for more than 12 hours on Wednesday
Instead, Mr Williams and Ms Bayer Rosmarin said they would “reward” customers who stayed with Optus for their “loyalty and patience”, although they did not provide specific details on what this would entail.
Australian Communications Consumer Action Network CEO Andrew Williams said yesterday he was “looking forward” to hearing how customers would be compensated, which he said was a right “under their contract and the Australian Consumer Law”.
The outage is the second major hit Optus has suffered in just over 12 months after data from its 10 million customers was stolen in a massive hack in September 2022.
The company’s communications were widely criticized in both cases, with customers unaware of whether their information had been compromised during the September hack and no explanation given for yesterday’s blackout.
More than 14 hours after the outage first occurred, Ms. Bayer Rosmarin was unable to explain what caused the problem other than a “technical network error.”
People were unable to call triple zero on Optus landline devices during the outage, although this was still possible on a mobile phone.
Public infrastructure, including Melbourne’s metropolitan rail network, came to a standstill early on Wednesday before slowly restarting with major delays during the morning peak.
Service NSW call centres, Victoria’s virtual emergency department and Northern Health hospital phone lines were also offline during the Optus outage.
On Wednesday, as the outage was in full swing, Ms Bayer Rosmarin’s luxury home overlooking Sydney Harbor was staged for a photo shoot for the architect.
The property features a grand Great Gatsby style interior with original fireplaces and a spectacular curved staircase for a dramatic entrance to the reception.
Ms Rosmarin was not seen during the photo shoot, which started just hours after Optus crashed across the country.
Her family moved into the house just 18 months ago after selling another, more modern, luxury home nearby for $7.75 million.
They also sold their second home in Bowral in the Southern Highlands for $4 million last year, after spending almost $400,000 on a swimming pool renovation.
Several young men and women could be seen organizing the shoot, ferrying items to and from the balcony overlooking Sydney Harbor at the $15 million 1920s dream home.
Wicker furniture, elaborate floral arrangements and rugs could be seen being put into position for the photo shoot, along with various camera equipment
They also sold their second home, a sprawling 1915 Rose Manor in Bowral in the NSW Southern Highlands, for $4 million in August last year after a $400,000 renovation.
The outage hit businesses again with a blow, a day after the Reserve Bank raised interest rates, said Rob Godwin, director of the National Retail Association.
“This is costing companies thousands of dollars in revenue that they desperately need now given yesterday’s interest rate hike,” he said.
The Albanian government has confirmed it will conduct a telecommunications investigation into the outage.
Connectivity was “absolutely essential” for consumers and businesses, and the consequences of Wednesday’s outage were particularly worrying, federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said on Thursday.
“While we welcome the restoration of Optus services during the day, it is critical that the government implements a process to learn lessons from yesterday’s outage,” she said in a statement.
Ms Rowland said she would direct her department to develop terms of reference for a post-incident review. Further announcements on the mandate and next steps will be made in due course.
‘It is crucial that industry and governments take stock after large-scale disruptions as no network is immune.’
Ms Rowland said she hoped the review would also help major telecommunications providers improve processes following an outage.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority has launched an independent investigation into whether Optus is complying with emergency calling rules.