04042022-VIC-S-C-P-GIPPSLAND AND SURROUNDING AREA_RUNL

Delay due to severe weather events in the East Gippsland, West & South Gippsland Districts, and part of North East District of Victoria.

The East Gippsland, West & South Gippsland Districts, and part of North East District of Victoria were impacted by severe weather on or about Saturday 2 April 2022 through to Sunday 3 April 2022.

An interruption to normal operations has occurred leading to delays in installation and repair activities. As many as 75 Optus services are impacted in the area bounded by and including but is not limited to, the area starting at Cape Howe on the VIC/NSW border following the coastline south-westerly past Lakes Entrance and Wilsons Promontory to Lang Lang Beach then northeast past Jericho to Selwyn. From Selwyn, the area heads southeast to Cobungra, north to Dartmouth, east to the VIC/NSW border and continues to follow the border back to Cape Howe. All suburbs, towns, offshore islands and coastal areas serviced by Optus within these boundaries are encompassed.

How will this affect you?

Unfortunately, your service may be affected and we may take longer than normal to fix telephone services or complete connections. Services in the area mentioned above with phone numbers in the following number ranges may have been affected:

0351200000 | 0351994999 0359098000 | 0359098999 0359194000 | 0359194999

0356127000 | 0356127999 0359100000 | 0359100999 0359402100 | 0359569999

0356180000 | 0356182999 0359121000 | 0359129999 0359800000 | 0359809999

0356210000 | 0356379999 0359160000 | 0359182999 0359974000 | 0359978999

0356540000 | 0356899999 0359184000 | 0359192999

We anticipate that the majority of services will be restored by 1 May 2022.  We’re sorry for any inconvenience this delay may cause but we can assure you we are working hard to get things back on track.

What else do you need to know?

Information as to the nature of these severe weather events can be sourced from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM). Intense rainfall and damaging winds are referred to in the BOM Severe Weather Warning issued for 2 April 2022 initially at 4:59 pm Saturday, 2 April 2022, reference number IDV21037; all of which were widely reported in the news media after the events.

Due to this event, we’re claiming an exemption under section 21 of the Telecommunications (Customer Service Guarantee) Standard 2011, including an exemption from the payment of compensation between 4 April 2022 to 1 May 2022 inclusive for any delays in fixing or connecting services, and the keeping of appointments relating to these activities in the impacted area.

Need more information?

If you have any questions regarding your eligibility for a CSG payment under this notice, or wish to have us reconsider whether the circumstances were a proper basis for claiming an exemption, you can contact Optus on 13 39 37 quoting CSG exemption reference number 04042022-VIC-S-C-P-GIPPSLAND AND SURROUNDING AREA_RUNL

You can also view a copy of this notice on our Internet site www.optus.com.au/msd

If, after calling Optus on the above number, you remain unsatisfied with our response to your query, you have the option of raising the matter with the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO). Information on the TIO and contact details are available on the Internet (www.tio.com.au) and in the White Pages® telephone directory.