Q1: How can I pay my bill?
Q2: Is there any way of using the Bpay details each month?
Q3: What should I expect in my first bill from Southern Cross Telco?
Q4: How do I check my usage?
Q5: Can you give me instructions on how to read my bill?
Q6: What am I being charged for?
Q7: How can I stop certain types of calls being made from my landline without my permission?
Q8: How long does it take for my service to be connected?
Q9: Will I be charged any connection fees?
Q10: Are you an Australian owned company?
Q11: Is there any incentive if I refer other customers to Southern Cross Telco?
Q12: How long does it take for a fault to be fixed?
Q13: What do I do if my internet won’t connect?
Q14: What is Premium SMS and what can I do if I want them to stop?
Q15: How much does it cost to have International Roaming?
Q16: How do I extend the ring time before my mobile diverts to voicemail?
Q17: How do I activate my SIM card?
Q18: Am I contracted to stay with Southern Cross Telco?
Q19: Do I need to contact my former service provider to tell them I have changed?
Q20: How can I get my MMS, WAP, GPRS, and E-mail settings from the Optus Network?
Q21: Where can I found out how to calculate the Early Termination Fee?
Q22: How can I know if there is mobile coverage where I live? Is my coverage 2G or 3G?
Q1: How can I pay my bill?
We accept many payment options: Cheque or Money Order by Mail, Credit Card by Phone, Mail, or Fax, Australia Post Billpay, Direct Debit, and Bpay. All the instruction on how to pay under the 'How To Pay' section of your bill. (Return to questions)
Q2: Is there any way of using the Bpay details each month?
The bill number, and therefore BPAY reference number, does change with each bill however if you are saving our BPAY details to use each month you are able to use the any bill number repeatedly to make your payments each month. Please note our BPAY biller code 93989 which does not change. (Return to questions)
Q3: What should I expect in my first bill from Southern Cross Telco?
Your first bill will include all the installation and setup charges related to your account. Also you will notice your plan charges and service and equipment are higher than expected, this is because on your first bill you pay from the date your service is connect with Southern Cross Telco until your billing date, and then another full month in advance. (Return to questions)
Q4: How do I check my usage?
Soon, we will be offering you online access to ‘My Account’ where you will be able to view the full details of your subscription and usage for your landline, mobile and internet services, as well as submit your complaints, faults and enquiries. Until then, you will need to contact us with your account details handy. (Return to questions)
Q5: Can you give me instructions on how to read my bill?
Please contact customer service and we'll help you out or click here to view a bill sample. (Return to questions)
Q6: What am I being charged for?
Please look at page 1 of your bill, under ‘Account Summary’; you will find the details of the each of the products you are subscribed to with Southern Cross Telco. For further details about these products, please look at page 3, under ‘Usage Summary’. If you would like to know specific call rates please contact us. (Return to questions)
Q7: How can I stop certain types of calls being made from my landline without my permission?
You can place call control on your line to stop people without a PIN number from making certain calls (e.g. National calls, Mobile calls, Mobile calls). To activate this service please contact our customer service team. (Return to questions)
Q8: How long does it take for my service to be connected?
To have a new landline connected takes 5 days for metro areas, 10 days for rural areas and 15 days for major rural areas depending on available network infrastructure. If you are bringing over an existing service from another provider this can take between 4 and 10 days however it is unlikely you will lose your service during the churn.
A new ADSL service connected takes between 5 and 7 days after the landline is fully connected and a new mobile service can be activated on the same day between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday. (Return to questions)
Q9: Will I be charged any connection fees?
Yes, the cost of a new landline service can vary between $59 and $299 depending on the available network infrastructure. ADSL connections cost $99 if you do not have any other services with us, $49.50 if you have two services and they are free if you have three or more services billing on the same account. (Return to questions)
Q10: Are you an Australian owned company?
Yes, we proudly are 100% Australian owned, and our customer service centre based in Hobart.
(Return to questions)
Q11: Is there any incentive if I refer other customers to Southern Cross Telco?
Yes, if referring a customer to Southern Cross Telco you will receive a $30 credit on your account to thank you for your loyalty to us. (Return to questions)
Q12: How long does it take for a fault to be fixed?
Faults and service difficulties are repaired within specified time periods based on the service location. The guaranteed maximum repair periods specified by the CSG Standard are:
| Service location (see below) | Time for repair * |
|---|---|
| Urban: | End of one full working day after report |
| Major rural: | End of two full working days after report |
| Minor rural: | End of two full working days after report |
| Remote: | End of three full working days after report |
* The time for repair relating to 'end of one full working day after report' applies to all service locations, where the fault can be rectified without the telephone company attending customer premises or undertaking internal or external plant work. (Working days do not include weekend or public holidays).
| Location category | Demographics |
|---|---|
| Urban: | Township / community grouping of 10,000 people or more |
| Major rural: | Township / community of 2,500 people or more but less than 10,000 people |
| Minor rural: | Township / community of 200 people or more but less than 2,500 people |
| Remote: | Township / community of less than 200 people or township / community grouping located outside a standard zone |
(Return to questions)
Q13: What do I do if my internet won’t connect?
The first thing to do if you are having difficulty connecting to the internet is to unplug your modem from the computer and from the power socket for a full 20 minutes. Once this time frame has elapsed connected everything back up again and try to connect to the internet. If you are still have issues with this please contact our technical support team. (Return to questions)
Q14: What is Premium SMS and what can I do if I want them to stop?
Premium SMS services are information and entertainment services and are usually advertised on television, on the internet, in magazines or newspapers and on scratch cards. Usually, to subscribe to a Premium Service you will be required to ‘Opt-in’ in response to an advertisement.
An Opt-in is typically initiated in three different ways:
| 1. | SMS – you respond to a product offer received on your mobile phone or seen in an advertisement by texting a keyword to a designated 6-8 digit number starting with ‘19’ |
| 2. | Online – your mobile number is entered in an online advertisement |
| 3. | IVR – you respond to a voice prompt in an automated recorded message received on your mobile |
Often, a Premium Service is an SMS Subscription Service, which may mean that once you Opt-in you will receive a subscribe confirmation message. This means that you have then subscribed to the Premium Service and may be subject to continual charges or fees. Premium Messaging Services include psychic lines, weather services, adult services, and voting lines for TV shows or competitions. Proprietary network services such as Optus Zoo also offer access to Premium Data Services to purchase or access things such as ringtones, music tracks and TV.
To address unwanted Premium SMS services please reply to the message with the word 'Stop' and then call us on 1300 855 728 and select option 4 for Customer Service, and we can take further action from a network level. If you wish to make a complaint about the supply of a premium SMS or MMS service and it is unable to be resolved by Customer Service, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman may be able to assist you.
Q15: How much does it cost to have International Roaming?
When you activate international roaming you are giving your mobile service the capability to access overseas networks while you are travelling. It does not cost anything to have this capability activated on your phone.
The usage costs while you are using an overseas network are greatly increased and you also get charged to receive calls as well as making them. You can check the costs for the specific country you are travelling to by clicking here for Optus Roaming cost. (Return to questions)
Q16: How do I extend the ring time before my mobile diverts to voicemail?
You can do this by keying in the following sequence on your handset. For mobiles on the Telstra network - **61*101**30# and for mobiles on the Optus network - **61*321**30#.
If you have any difficulty with this please contact our Customer Service team. (Return to questions)
Q17: How do I activate my SIM card?
Please call us and select option 1for the customer activations team between 8:30am and 5:30pm and we can activate your mobile service on the same day. You can also email the customer activation team with the following details:
- Southern Cross Telco account number
- Billing name
- Mobile service number
- SIM serial number
- Preferred activation time
- An alternate contact number
Q18: Am I contracted to stay with Southern Cross Telco?
If you have subscribed to a landline product, i.e. Home Ultimate, there is no contract! You can disconnect anytime with no termination fees.
If you subscribed to an Internet product, you have to commit to six months minimum before you terminate. However, should you cancel within the first six months we will have to charge you a $110 cancellation fee to cover our set-up costs? If you downgrade your broadband plan, a $20 administration fee applies.
If you subscribed to a mobile or mobile broadband plan on a 12 or 24 month contract, and you wish to terminate before the end of that contracted term, then you are required to pay the ‘Handset Recovery Fee’. This fee is calculated approximately by the outright price divided by the minimum commitment period times the number of months remaining. (Return to questions)
Q19: Do I need to contact my former service provider to tell them I have changed?
No, we will do all the moving for you unless we specifically tell you otherwise. You will just need to finalise your payments with them. (Return to questions)
Q20: how can I get my MMS, WAP, GPRS, and E-mail settings from the Optus Network?
click here and enter your handset model to receive your settings via SMS! (Return to questions)
Q21: Where can I found out how to calculate the Early Termination Fee?
Early Termination Fee - The method for calculating the applicable Early Termination Fee (ETF) can be found on your Rate Sheet, or by contacting Customer Service during Business Hours. (Return to questions)
Q22: How can I know if there is mobile coverage where I live? Is my coverage 2G or 3G?
We provide our Mobile service through Optus network, click here and enter your street address to search a single location, or between two or three locations. (Return to questions)
