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The organisation is also advocating for an overhaul of Triple Zero services.
Telstra has been fined more than $3 million for 473 breaches of Triple Zero rules relating to an incident on 1 March 2024, during which Telstra’s Triple Zero call centre was hampered in transferring calls to emergency services for 90 minutes. Customers were unable to access the service as expected.
ACCAN CEO Carol Bennett thanked Telstra for their acknowledgement of the significant safety risk posed to the public by this breach, but stressed that the critical nature of emergency services means every effort must be made to ensure this does not happen again.
“Telstra has a significant responsibility to the Australian public as our nation’s only designated Emergency Call Person. We all rely on Telstra to answer and transfer emergency calls when we need it most.”
“The fundamental importance of Triple Zero cannot be overstated. We appreciate that Telstra have taken steps to remediate this situation and improve services.”
Read more: Albanese Government boosts Triple Zero reliability with new measures
“Since the Triple Zero incident in March, two government-initiated reviews have made important recommendations regarding Triple Zero which have been accepted and implemented by the Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland.”
“This means that many lessons from this incident have already been addressed.”
“But there is more to do to introduce next generation Triple Zero services. We encourage the government and Telstra to immediately consider what steps may facilitate the adoption of ‘Next Generation Triple Zero’ services, including direct text to Triple Zero, to ensure all Australians can access emergency services when they need them most.” Bennett said.
ACCAN also highlighted the importance of ongoing collaboration between government, Telstra, and community groups to ensure that the lessons learned from the incident lead to lasting improvements.
They emphasised that consumer input and feedback are vital in shaping future emergency service systems that are both effective and inclusive for all Australians.
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