Section 255 Complaint Form

We've designed this form to help you file a Section 255 (Sec. 255) complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The U.S. Congress amended U.S. Telecommunications Law in 1996 to ensure that telephones and telephone services will be accessible for people with disabilities. This provision is popularly known as Sec. 255, and it applies to all telephones and telephone services used by persons with disabilities, including persons who are blind or visually impaired. To learn more about Sec. 255 and your rights as a consumer, read our pamphlet at http://www.afb.org/section255.asp.

Who Should Complain?

Congress included a complaint process for consumers as part of Sec. 255 so that the government could help consumers obtain accessible telephones and accessible telephone services. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is responsible for resolving consumer complaints filed under Sec.255. The FCC was designated for this responsibility because it is the Federal agency that oversees communication law in the U.S., including the disability provisions in Sec. 255.

This form is provided as a public service by the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) to assist consumers who are blind or visually impaired in filing Sec. 255 complaints with the FCC. You should use this form to complain to the FCC

• if you have tried and failed to obtain an accessible telephone
• if you have tried and failed to obtain a manual for your telephone in a form you can read without assistance
• if you have tried to get your telephone bill in a form you can read independently, but are still not getting an accessible bill from your telephone company
• if you have asked telephone equipment manufacturers and service providers for accessible products and services but have not received them

Although not every telephone is expected to have all the same access features, Sec. 255 requires companies to do all that is "readily  achievable"—that is, do what they can without much difficulty or expense—to make each product or service accessible. The Internet and electronic mail are not currently covered under the law. Also, be aware that there may be legitimate, legally acceptable reasons why a company is unable to meet your access needs. Nevertheless, you should file a complaint if you feel you have been denied the kind of access that sighted users enjoy. It is the FCC's responsibility to determine whether a company's reasons are valid. If you don't ask and complain, manufacturers, service providers, and the FCC may assume that there is no problem with existing telephone products and services for people who are blind or visually impaired.

What This Form Will Do

This form will help you file your complaint electronically with the FCC. A copy will be sent to you by email for your records, and a copy will go to the FCC. AFB will not keep a copy unless you explicitly allow us to keep a copy for the purpose of gathering information about the kinds of complaints that consumers have filed. You will not be contacted by AFB, and we will not provide any information you give to anyone under any circumstances except that we will send your completed complaint on to the FCC. They will contact you in the manner you indicate on this form.

How To Prepare Your Complaint

An informal Sec. 255 complaint, like the one this form facilitates for you, is not complicated. You will not need a lawyer. It is important, however, that you be as specific as you can in your responses to the questions on this form. The more detailed and specific the information you provide, the easier it will be for the FCC to resolve your complaint.

We've done our best to help make this process as easy for you as we can. For example, we've included possible answers to questions for you to select, and we've included contact information for major telephone companies and manufacturers doing business in the U.S. The following section provides a summary of the information you need to provide in your complaint. Use it to prepare and to check your information before you submit your complaint. You can also just move down this page and fill out the complaint form:

Summary and Links to the Information in your Complaint

• Information About You: including your name address, e-mail, telephone number, disability, and how you want the FCC to contact you;
• Information About the Telephone or Service: including the name and address of the telephone company or manufacturer, specific data about the telephone or service plan, the date you purchased (or attempted to purchase) this equipment or service, so the FCC can know exactly what product or service has created an accessibility problem for you;
• Problem Description: including an explanation of why your disability makes the product or service inaccessible to you, information on who in the company you've spoken with and what they've told you, and an explanation of what you want the company to do for you;

Information About You

An asterisk (*) preceding a field indicates that it is required.

*Please correspond with me via  Select preferred correspondence E-mail Text Telephone (TDD) Large print by mail Standard print by mail Braille by mail

Information About the Telephone or Service

Problem Description

AFB would like to keep a copy of your complaint, but we will not keep a copy unless we have your explicit permission to do so. We would like to gather information about the different kinds of complaints that people are making to the FCC to assist us in our advocacy efforts on behalf of people who are blind or visually impaired. We will not contact you directly about this complaint, nor will we share the information you provide with anyone, except as it is aggregated with information from others who have complained.

Would you like to send a copy to AFB?
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