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Optus bosses have said they will not compensate customers for the biggest communications outage in Australian history.
More than 10 million people and businesses were thrown into disarray on Wednesday after the phone company’s network went out around 4 a.m., preventing customers from connecting to the internet or making or receiving calls.
Optus chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin, 46, then created her own PR disaster when she went missing in action for seven hours as essential services and businesses struggled to cope.
It took more than 12 hours before services were finally restored.
Ms Bayer Rosmarin said last night she understood how much people depend on connectivity and indicated 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 today’s outage and reward them for their loyalty to Optus,” she said.
“We will certainly consider all avenues as we turn our attention, now that services are restored, to how we work with our customers.”
But Ms Bayer Rosmarin and managing director of customer solutions Matt Williams have since told media there was no question of compensating customers for the outage period because “reimbursing people for a day probably costs less of 2 dollars”.
Asked about businesses paying higher rates for the service and being unable to make sales, Mr Williams said the same applied, namely they would only be eligible for a small refund for the breakdown period.
“We’re not talking about compensation,” he said.
Kelly Bayer Rosmarin (pictured) has been the CEO of Optus since April 1, 2020, but most people only hear her name when the company is caught in a PR disaster.
Business and personal customers were left 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 remained with Optus for their “loyalty and patience”, although they did not provide specific details of what this would entail.
Andrew Williams, CEO of the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network, said yesterday he was “looking forward” to hearing how customers would be compensated, which he said was a right “under their contract and Australian law of the consumption “.
The outage is the second major problem suffered by Optus in just over 12 months after the data of its 10 million customers was stolen in a massive hack in September 2022.
The company’s communication in both cases was widely criticized, with customers unsure whether their information had been leaked in the September hack and not receiving an explanation for yesterday’s outage.
More than 14 hours after the first outage, Ms Bayer Rosmarin could not explain the cause of the problem other than a “technical network failure”.
People were unable to make triple zero calls on Optus landlines during the outage, although it was still possible to do so on a mobile phone.
Public infrastructure, including Melbourne’s metropolitan rail network, came to a halt early on Wednesday before slowly restarting with significant delays throughout the morning peak.
Service NSW call centres, Victoria’s virtual emergency service and Northern Health hospital phone lines were also down during the Optus outage.
On Wednesday, as the outage was in full swing, Ms Bayer Rosmarin’s luxury home, overlooking Sydney Harbour, was being prepared for a photoshoot for the architect.
The property features a grand Great Gatsby style interior with original fireplaces and a dramatic curved staircase for a dramatic entrance to the reception area.
Ms Rosmarin was not seen during the photo shoot, which began several hours after Optus crashed across the country.
His family moved into the home just 18 months ago after selling another, more modern-style 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 photo shoot, carrying items in and out of the balcony overlooking Sydney Harbor in the $15 million 1920s dream home.
Wicker furniture, elaborate floral elements and rugs could be seen set up for the photo shoot along with various photographic equipment.
They also sold their second home, a sprawling 1915 Rose Manor in Bowral, in New South Wales’ Southern Highlands, for $4 million in August last year, following a $400,000 renovation.
The outage was a further blow to businesses, a day after the Reserve Bank raised interest rates, National Retail Association director Rob Godwin said.
“This is costing businesses thousands of dollars in sales that they sorely need given yesterday’s rate hike,” he said.
The Albanian government confirmed it would undertake a telecommunications study following the outage.
Connectivity was “absolutely essential” for consumers and businesses, and the impacts of Wednesday’s outage were particularly concerning, federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said on Thursday.
“While we welcome the restoration of Optus services today, it is essential that the Government leads a process to identify lessons learned from yesterday’s outage,” she said in a statement.
Ms Rowland said she would task her department with developing terms of reference for a post-incident review. Further announcements regarding terms of reference and next steps will be made in due course.
“It is essential that industry and governments take stock following large-scale outages, as no network is immune.”
Ms Rowland said she hoped the review would also help major telecommunications providers improve post-outage processes.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority has independently launched a review to investigate Optus’ compliance with emergency call rules.