The federal ombudsman for telecommunications received 15,087 requests for intervention last year, including 2,642 related to identifying malicious communications, according to its annual report released on Thursday.
Complaints dropped by 6.31% compared to the previous year but remain high historically, the mediation service noted. Grievances against Proximus and Telenet decreased, while complaints about Orange increased significantly.
Billing issues accounted for 28.63% of all complaints, making it the most common reason for contacting the ombudsman, followed by contract-related queries at 23.31% and service disruptions at 15.53%. Of the complaints filed, 86.31% were deemed admissible, with 96.72% of these resolved amicably.
Customer service concerns were raised in over 11% of intervention requests. The ombudsman emphasised the need for balance between implementing digital solutions and providing accessible human assistance to serve diverse customer needs in a rapidly evolving telecom sector.
Contract termination remains a major source of disputes, with over 900 requests recorded in 2025. The mediation service proposed introducing easy-to-use digital systems for contract termination, similar to practices in France, to simplify the process and address the lack of clear information available to customers.
The ranking of operators by complaint volume largely reflects their market positions. Proximus, including its Scarlet brand, received over 5,400 requests for intervention, down 17.21% from the previous year. Telenet, including its Base brand, had over 4,600, marking a 21.21% decrease.
Orange, the third-largest operator, saw intervention requests climb by 23.29% to approximately 3,900. Excluding its Voo brand, the increase surged to 28.99%. Newcomer Digi, which entered the Belgian market in December 2024, logged 471 complaints. Meanwhile, Unleashed (Mobile Vikings) faced nearly 300 requests, representing a 32.29% year-on-year increase.
The ombudsman also reported challenges related to United Telecom, which declared bankruptcy in December 2024. Efforts were complicated by difficulties with the company’s curators or associated entities.
Consumer protection minister Rob Beenders (Vooruit) announced measures to address customer frustrations with telecom operators. These include a detailed analysis by the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications (IBPT), expected by the end of the year.
