Get help from your telco

Telcos have trained staff and strict new rules they must follow to help you. 

This means you can talk to your telco about getting help and staying safe using your telco services. You can also find info on their website about how they can help you.

Large telcos must follow extra rules to keep you safe. These are set out below.

Smaller telcos will need to follow these extra rules from 1 April 2026.

You can find all large telcos listed in this table. Telcos not on this list are small telcos.

Your telco must:

• check you are safe to talk before starting conversations
• use safe, agreed ways to contact you
• provide at least 2 ways for you to contact them
• keep your information safe and secure so the perpetrator cannot find out where you are or how to contact you. This might include setting up a new account or adding PINs for extra protection
• have written policies and procedures to show how they handle domestic and family violence requests, and provide information about privacy, security and staff responsibilities.

Read more about how your telco will protect your safety, privacy and security.

Your telco must have trained staff to help and respond sensitively to you, including explaining your situation for you if they need to transfer you to another person or team so you don’t have to repeat your story. 

They should never:

• ask you for details about your abuse or
• ask you to provide evidence of domestic, family or sexual violence unless it’s to keep you safe or required by law (for example, they need information to help protect you from a scam).

Your telco must take extra steps to keep you connected, by not disconnecting, suspending or restricting your service for 30 days when you tell them you are at risk of, or are experiencing, domestic, family or sexual violence.

Your telco must always:

• only collect the information they really need
• keep your information safe and stop anyone who shouldn’t see it from getting it
• safely destroy your information when it is no longer needed.

Read more about how your telco will protect your safety, privacy and security.

Before your telco takes any action about a debt, if you have asked for help in the last 60 days they must check in and make sure it’s fair and safe to do so. This includes:

• thinking about how debt action could affect you right now
• checking whether someone else may have contributed to the debt
• making sure any help they’ve already agreed to – like payment plans or extensions – has been set up properly.

Find more information about financial hardship help your telco can offer if you are having difficulty paying your bills.

Your telco must:

• treat a complaint you make as urgent if there is a threat to your, or your children’s, safety
• resolve your complaint within 2 working days.

Find out more about making a complaint.