This page describes in more detail the telecom operators’ right to use façades, and the various steps in the procedure:
- Legal context
- Prior communication by the operator
- Search for agreement
- Formal procedure before the BIPT
- Removal or move of existing cables during work on façades
You can download this information sheet as a handy outline.
Legal context
Article 99 of the Act of 21 March 1991 on the reform of certain economic public companies entitles telecom operators to permanently attach, free of charge, supports on walls and façades. The BIPT interprets “façades facing the public road” as all façades facing the public road, including those having a front garden. The Act does not impose a limit on the number of operators who can enjoy that right: in principle a homeowner cannot deny that right.
Article 99 also entitles operators to make use of open, unbuilt grounds, and to cross or enter properties without attachment or contact. The same procedure applies.
If an operator is registered with the BIPT the law automatically grants him that right. The list of registered operators can be consulted on the BIPT website.
The BIPT wishes to stress the fact that it does not explicitly grant licences to operators to roll out a network at a specific location. The right to roll out a network on façades results in a general way from the Act of 21 March 1991. The BIPT only monitors the correct implementation of that Act.
Prior communication by the operator
The article lays down that the operator must search for agreement with the homeowner involved before starting the work. The Act does not specify how that should be done.
As a general principle this obligation is assumed to have been fulfilled if the owner is informed of the operator’s intention to carry out work, is by and large aware of what that work entails and does not oppose it. In that respect the operator must notify the homeowner of his intention to carry out an installation on his façade a reasonable time before the work is started, so that the homeowner can obtain more information and can ask to adapt the method of installation if that is possible and advisable.
Such a notification can be done by letter (possibly a generic letter in case of an extensive roll-out, e.g. per neighbourhood), by e-mail, by telephone, or even orally on the spot in case of urgent modifications.
The BIPT consults closely with the operators regarding this communication with the residents in order to solve any problems. In case of comments or complaints in this respect it is always possible to contact the BIPT.
Search for agreement
If a homeowner does not succeed in obtaining more information or encounters difficulties in his communication or discussions with the operator, he can always turn to the BIPT. Consequently the BIPT will also contact the operator and follow the case, this would be part of a so-called “informal” procedure.
However, the BIPT stresses the fact that this informal procedure is very important because it is part of what Article 99 lays down, namely the operator having to strive for agreement. It is impossible to submit a “formal complaint” to the BIPT, without both parties having effectively striven for an agreement.
In this context one can also always turn to the Office of the Ombudsman for Telecommunications.
Formal procedure before the BIPT
If no agreement with the homeowner can be reached, the operator submits by registered post an ultimate proposal that describes clearly the planned location and manner of execution to the homeowner in question. Upon receipt of that proposal the owner has 8 workdays to submit a motivated complaint to the BIPT by post or by e-mail (see the general contact data on the BIPT website). The BIPT always confirms this with an acknowledgment of receipt.
The BIPT stresses the fact that the refusal must be motivated thoroughly. In principle, the right to make use of façades applies to every operator. The mere fact that another operator has already installed fibre on the façade or that the proprietor is not a customer of the operator in question, cannot be the sole reason to refuse a new installation.
Upon receipt of the complaint it is filed by the BIPT and the operator is informed that a complaint has been received and that the intended work must be suspended until the BIPT has taken a decision.
When evaluating a case the BIPT takes account of the following elements (the examples are not exhaustive):
- What is the purpose of the work: new installation / repair / removal?
- Has the operator opted for the most efficient route, taking account of the fact that he causes as little nuisance as possible for the homeowner and the neighbourhood in general?
- Has he made the best choice within reasonable terms from an aesthetic point of view?
- Has the operator proceeded with due caution?
- Does the homeowner propose a reasonable alternative or is there no alternative?
- How much do alternatives, if any, cost?
The BIPT underlines that the evaluations above are made in the context of deployment on the façade, because the operator is entitled to do so. If it would be necessary for an operator to deploy underground as an alternative, this must be duly motivated (for example, in case of conservation façades, which is a regional competence). Any alternative technical solutions the BIPT would examine in case of a formal complaint would therefore rather be focused on alternative ways of installation on the façade in question.
In that context the BIPT also adds that this procedure is independent of any applicable urban development obligations, which do not fall under the BIPT’s competence. It is obvious that operators have to comply with those obligations, for instance as far as permit obligations for conservation façades is concerned. Inspections regarding such urban development regulations are to be carried out by the competent regional and municipal authorities. The BIPT has no say in this matter.
Removal or move of existing cables during work on façades
The installation of cables or equipment on a façade does not exclude the possibility to carry out later works on façades that would require the move of those cables or that equipment. However, this may not be the sole purpose of such work. The homeowner must inform the operator by registered post two months before the start of the work. In that case the costs for moving the cables are borne by the operator.