The Spanish, Lower House of Parliament (El Congreso) approved the Customer Service Law this Thursday, with only Vox voting against and the PP and UPN abstaining.

The new law includes the prohibition of companies keeping callers endlessly on hold or cutting them off, and also obliges them to respond to requests for information or complaints with a maximum of three minutes.

It’s no surprise that it sailed through the Lower house as the majority of the members of the Consumer Affairs Committee endorsed the bill’s report yesterday, meaning there were enough votes.

Although it still has to pass through the Upper House (Senate) the majority in El Congreso guarantees its passage from now and the beginning of 2026, regardless of what happens in the Senate.

The opposition (centre-right, PP and far-right Vox) opposed the law, criticising it over the alleged “detrimental effects the text will have on the private sector.”

Minister Pablo Bustinduy says that the law seeks to guarantee the right to quality, fast, and personalised customer service, bringing order to a service that is often chaotic and with which one in five users of electricity, gas, telephone, and internet companies are dissatisfied.

Readers will be glad to hear that the law also includes measures to curb spam calls, as well as protect minors from online, gambling advertising.

So which type of company is the law aimed at? Principally, customer-service departments of utility companies (gas, water, electricity, telephone, internet) and basic services companies (transport, mail, and financial services) must comply with these requirements, all companies with more than 250 employees or €50 million in revenue. Well, that’s the Gazette off the hook…

The Three-Minute Law: If this law works, we can kiss goodbye to being kept on the line subjected to brain-liquidating, mindless tunes. And the old trick of cutting you off because you actually persist in waiting, will become things of the past.

This is because the law requires companies to answer 95% of the telephone calls they receive from their customers in less than three minutes.

What else? Ah, yes; free 24-Hour Telephone Service! Companies must have a dedicated, free, customer-service, telephone number available during their business hours. They cannot transfer calls to paid extensions, and if the customer is not satisfied with the service, they have the right to speak with a supervisor. Furthermore, all water, gas, electricity, and telecommunications companies must have a 24/7/365 customer service line for urgent service or supply problems or incidents.

Tired of ranting at an AI robot on the other end? Companies are prohibited from handling calls exclusively through answering machines. Customers can request to speak directly with a specialised operator at any point during their inquiry or complaint.

We have all been through the calvary of having to phone up repeatedly or send numerous emails concerning a complaint. Well, companies will only have a maximum of 15 days to resolve a complaint or claim (previously 30) and must assign a customer or complaint number to facilitate tracking and send written confirmation with the date, time, and reason for the complaint.

Here’s another heart-warming bit: If the incident involves a service or supply interruption, they must explain the cause and state when service will be restored within two hours.

What about when you finally get through to a human and the first thing that they do is try to sell you something? Well, no sales pitches! Customer service representatives may not use calls to offer products, services, or commercial deals unrelated to the specific reason for the call, as is currently the case.

And above all, Ladies and selectively deaf Gentlemen, there is a crackdown on spam calls – Glory be! Yes, those annoying spam calls that cut off when you pick the phone up or patch you through to a call centre so that they can sell you something… might go the same way as the dodo.

Companies will be required to use a prefix identifiable to the customer in their calls, and telephone companies must block those that do not. Furthermore, any contract concluded through a spam calls will be considered invalid, meaning you can’t legally be roped into a service that you do not want.

Now, somebody please tell us why the PP and Vox would oppose these measures? That’s a rhetorical question, by the way.

(News: Spain)

Keywords: Interminable Waits, Cut Off, Spam Calls, Complaints, Hold The Line, New Law

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