We’re here to help
If circumstances make it difficult to pay your bill, payment assistance may be available.
You can apply for short-term or long-term assistance free of charge. Talk to us about your circumstances and the options that may help you stay connected.
If you are having trouble paying, contact us so we can discuss what may help.
You can apply for short-term or long-term payment assistance at no charge.
Suspension or disconnection is only considered as a matter of last resort.
We understand circumstances can change
1st Internet and WiFi understands that there may be times when you have difficulty paying your bills due to short-term or long-term circumstances.
If you are experiencing financial hardship, you have the right to apply for short-term or long-term payment assistance, and this assistance will be provided free of charge.
We’re here to help you find an arrangement that is suitable for your circumstances and helps you stay connected. If you are experiencing financial hardship, we will only suspend or disconnect your service as a matter of last resort.
When meeting your payment obligations becomes difficult
Financial hardship is when you are experiencing circumstances that mean you are unable to meet your payment obligations to 1st Internet and WiFi, but believe you will be able to meet those obligations if we agree to an arrangement for payment assistance.
Circumstances that may affect your ability to pay can include, but are not limited to, illness, unemployment, reduced income, experiencing domestic or family violence, a death in the family, natural disasters, or other unexpected events that change your income or expenses.
Options that may help you stay connected
We can provide a range of payment assistance options to help you stay connected when you are experiencing financial hardship.
Depending on your circumstances, the assistance available may include:
- ✓Temporarily postponing, extending or deferring the time for payment
- ✓Agreeing to a payment plan tailored to your ability to pay
- ✓Discounting certain bills, fees or charges
- ✓Applying a credit to your account
- ✓Waiving certain fees, charges or debt where appropriate
- ✓Introducing controls on how additional charges can be incurred
- ✓Placing a restriction on part of your service or specific services
- ✓Transferring you to a plan better suited to your circumstances
- ✓Removing non-essential features of a service at no cost
Many of our plans are month to month, which may also allow you to change or downgrade your plan to one that better suits your needs and financial circumstances.
Contact us to discuss your options
If you are having trouble paying your bill, would like to discuss options that may help reduce your ongoing costs, or wish to apply for financial hardship assistance, please contact us.
We’ll discuss your circumstances with you and work through the payment assistance options that may be available.
Independent financial counselling
If you are facing financial difficulty, you may wish to consider obtaining advice from a financial counsellor.
You can talk to a financial counsellor anywhere in Australia by contacting the National Debt Helpline by:
Calling 1800 007 007 (Free hotline is open from 9.30am - 4:30pm Monday to Friday)
Live Chat at https://ndh.org.au (9.00am - 8.00pm Monday to Friday)
If you are unhappy with the outcome
We’re genuinely here to help you. If you have a complaint about the outcome of your application for financial hardship assistance or the way your application has been handled, you can contact us via:
You can also find more information in our Complaints Handling Policy.
If you are unhappy with our handling of your complaint, you can seek external dispute resolution through the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO).
You can make a complaint to the TIO by:
Making a complaint will not affect your ability to apply for or agree to an arrangement for financial hardship assistance.