I’ve been charged for calls to a directory enquiry service I haven’t made – what should I do?

Industry players have committed in the standard agreements applicable on the market to follow the ethical rules as well as the parts of the premium rate services area regulated by the Code of Conduct (CoC) jointly developed by the telecom operators, the industry organization MORGAN, and the Telecom Advisors.

Directory assistance services use the 118 series, for example, Eniro’s 118118. Therefore, the issue falls outside the scope of the Telecom Advisors’ operations regarding premium rate services, and we are unable to help you contact the company or companies in question. However, you should be able to request and receive a call specification from your operator. This should include the calls to directory assistance that have been charged. If you believe that these calls were not made by anyone using the current subscription, you need to dispute the cost with your operator. The Consumer Agency is the authority that monitors compliance with consumer protection laws such as the Marketing Act, the Price Information Act, etc. The authority generally does not handle individual cases, but exceptions exist through the possibility of KO assistance. Reports to the authority can, however, lead to the initiation of supervision.

For advice on individual cases, you can contact the Consumer Agency’s information service. Many municipalities also offer consumer guidance where you as a consumer can get advice and support on various issues.
The issue has been relevant as to whether directory assistance services that provide information other than just telephone subscriptions should be considered premium rate services. The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (PTS), which manages the Swedish numbering plan, issued three injunctions on this issue in April 2014.

Since the end of September 2014, it should be possible to block a telephone subscription from the ability to call 118 numbers.