Better Cable Customer Service in NJ

Tougher rules for cable television customer service took effect in New Jersey on Monday. Companies are required to schedule service appointments within four-hour windows and answer customer-service phone calls within 30 seconds.

They will have to provide credits for service disruptions of three hours or more when customers request them. Previously, customers could not seek credits unless service was disrupted for at least six hours.

And companies must send a second notice if they fail to disconnect a customer's service within 30 days of the first shut-off notice.

Cable companies that do not comply with the rules face fines up to $1,000 for each infraction. Compliance will be monitored through spot checks and regular reviews.

The state Board of Public Utilities approved the new rules last month to improve service for the 2.5 million cable customers in New Jersey. More than 20,000 complaints about cable service have come in to BPU this year.

"Consumers keep our finger on the pulse of what's not going right," Celeste Fasone, director of the BPU's Office of Cable, told The Press of Atlantic City. "About every month, we see where there are spikes in problem areas."

A Comcast spokesman said southern New Jersey cable customers should see few changes due to the new rules because the company does most of those things already.

Copyright 2003 NBC10. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Author: NBC10