Telstra outage compensation: what can you actually claim?

If you were caught without mobile or internet service during a Telstra outage, don’t wait for Telstra to sort it out on its own. Telcos routinely grant a pro-rata credit for days without service when a customer actually asks for one, but they rarely offer it proactively. Start by noting the outage window as precisely as you can, roughly when your service dropped and when it came back, because that window is what your credit request will be based on.

The clearest claim is a pro-rata credit for the outage period itself: you were charged for a service you didn’t receive, and asking for that specific number of days back is a reasonable, low-friction request most telcos will action. Separately, the Customer Service Guarantee sets binding timeframes for connecting and repairing landline services, but it does not cover mobile outages, so don’t expect an automatic payout under that scheme just because your mobile was down. If you suffered a genuine financial loss because you relied on the service being available, a missed shift, a failed payment, business downtime, that is a different and potentially larger claim: the Australian Consumer Law’s guarantees on services can support a consequential loss claim, but it isn’t automatic, you need to document the loss and put the claim to Telstra in writing.

Ask Telstra directly first, in writing, for the pro-rata credit and, if applicable, your documented consequential loss, with dates, amounts and evidence attached. If Telstra fobs you off, or offers something that doesn’t match what you can actually show, escalate to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, it is free, independent, and telcos take TIO complaints seriously because each one costs them money to handle. After the 2023 Optus national outage, sustained customer complaints and regulator pressure led to real remediation packages, not because the telco volunteered them.