§ 138-32. Service inquiries, requests, complaints, and response times.*

A. 

Except in cases of force majeure, or an appointment scheduled with the mutual consent of a subscriber, an MCS provider classified as a cable operator, and any MCS provider not exempted from compliance with this section by federal law or rule shall respond to the service inquiries, requests and complaints of subscribers within such MCS provider's normal business or service hours, and within the time schedules detailed in Subsections D through G of this section. The MCS provider shall be considered in compliance with this section if the standards of service outlined in Subsections D through G are met or exceeded at least 98% of the time as measured over any three consecutive calendar months. Conversely, the MCS provider shall be considered in noncompliance, except for force majeure situations or mutually agreed upon scheduled appointments, if the standards of service outlined in Subsections D through G of this section are not met or exceeded at least 98% of the time over any three consecutive calendar months.

B. 

For extenuating circumstances in which an MCS provider cannot meet the response and service restoration requirements noted in Subsections D through G of this section, such MCS provider shall comply with and submit all documentation of progress towards restoration, as required by the provisions of this chapter, and any applicable rules of the PSC.

C. 

Moreover, except in emergency situations, an MCS provider shall inform the subscriber that there is a choice as to whether the service call is scheduled for the morning (8:00 a.m. to noon), afternoon (noon to 4:00 p.m.), or evening (4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. or later) hours. If the service call has to be canceled or rescheduled by the MCS provider, then the MCS provider shall make every effort to notify the customer or subscriber as soon as possible prior to the date and time of the appointment, and shall reschedule the service call for a time convenient to the customer or subscriber, within the MCS providers normal working hours, and if desired by the subscriber, within 24 hours of the canceled appointment, so long as the appointment is for a normal workday.

D. 

In the case of a report or complaint of a loss of service, such being defined as a "blank" or "no-picture" situation on either the lowest level of service or all levels of service, the MCS provider shall treat such report as a top priority and respond before starting any other job or function, except for a critical job that would jeopardize the functioning of the remaining portion of the system. In no case shall the response be later than six hours after the time the report or complaint is received, so long as it is received during a normal workday and four hours prior to the end of the workday. The MCS provider shall make its best effort to restore service as quickly as is possible, but in no event later than the soonest possible time, including when such a report or complaint is received after normal working hours. In the event of an after-hours report or complaint of a loss of service from two or more subscribers from the within the same portion of the system within the Town, the MCS provider shall respond to and make its best effort to restore service within two hours of the time the report or complaint was received, or in extenuating circumstances, as quickly as is possible. At no time shall an MCS provider's staff that responds to a report or complaint of a loss of service leave the problem until service is restored, where it is found that a loss of service has occurred.

E. 

In the case of a loss of service or a "blank" or "no-picture" situation of any given level of subscription or billing or service (except for pay-per-view events), an MCS provider shall respond to, and make repairs as are necessary to return and restore the multichannel service within 24 hours from the time the MCS provider first received notification of the service interruption "blank" or "no-picture" situation.

F. 

In the case of a signal or service interruption or a diminution of service as defined in § 138-4 of this chapter, an MCS provider shall make its best efforts to respond and remedy the problem the same day, but in no case later than one working day from the time the MCS provider first received notification of the signal or service interruption or diminution of service.

G. 

In the case of a defective, improperly or nonoperating piece of equipment, an MCS provider shall make its best efforts to respond and remedy the problem the same day, but in no case will the response be later than one working day from the time the MCS provider first received notification. Moreover, the MCS provider shall complete repairs as are necessary to correct the problem within 36 hours from the time the MCS provider first received notification of the defective, improperly or nonoperating piece of equipment.

H. 

In the case of a dispute concerning the precise time that the MCS provider received notification, or the precise circumstances surrounding the MCS provider receiving notification, or whether notification was received at all, the Town Board reserves the right and authority to dispositively settle such a dispute.