Telstra has apologised for unnecessarily harassing a widow about her deceased husband’s account for nearly ten years. 

Jenny Moncur attempted to cancel her husband’s account, with the company insisting on speaking with the account holder, despite her providing a physical copy of his death certificate.

Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, Cynthia Gebert acknowledged the poor reflection on her office as the woman’s case fell through a ‘processing crack’.

“It shouldn’t be hard for a consumer to deal with what is ultimately an administrative process and the harder they make it, the more it impacts trust and confidence in the industry”, she said.

Gebert further highlighted a useful service by the government, the Australian Death Notification Service, which enables people to tell their story once and minimises the impact of death administration.

Numerous listeners have shared similar stories involving other companies, illustrating the broad impact of the issue.

Hear more highlights from Afternoons with Deborah Knight below: