The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has launched legal action against Telstra, Optus and TPG, alleging they misled thousands of customers over NBN speeds.

The action relates to guarantees the telcos made about fibre-to-the-node connections between April 2019 and April 2020.

ACCC Chair Rod Sims said it’s been a long-running, frustrating issue.

“We got onto this issue in 2017, we were very close to taking them to court then,” he told Perth LIVE’s Oliver Peterson.

“They offered and we accepted a court-enforceable undertaking, that meant they would let consumers know what speeds their line could give them, and if it couldn’t give them the speed they were paying for, to offer them some sort of remedy.

“But then, they just didn’t take it seriously … they’re continuing to charge their consumers for products their consumers can’t get.

“It’s extremely concerning behaviour, and very much deja-vu.”

The ACCC said the telcos may have checked the performance of some NBN lines.

“It does show a disrespect, frankly, to their consumers, and I think a disrespect for the law,” he said.

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