Complaints Management

Why do we do complaints management?

Our complaints management system is intended to:

1. enable us to respond to issues raised by people making complaints in a timely and cost-effective way
2. boost public confidence in our administrative process, and
3. provide information that can be used by us to deliver quality improvements in our services, systems and complaint handling.

The 9 key principles of complaints management^[1]

Visibility

The complaint handling system is well publicised and transparent

Accessibility

There is no financial cost involved to making a complaint and the process for making a complaint and investigating it is easy for complainants to access and understand

Responsiveness

Complaints are acknowledged promptly, addressed according to urgency, and the complainant is kept informed throughout the process.

Objectivity and fairness

Each complaint is managed in an objective and unbiased manner and dealt with on its merit. Complaint handlers afford procedural fairness to all parties to a complaint. This approach helps to ensure that the complaint handling process is fair and reasonable. Unreasonable complainants are not allowed to become a burden.

Confidentiality and privacy

Personal information related to complaints is kept confidential. The organisation complies with all relevant privacy laws when managing a complaint.

Accountability

Accountabilities for complaint handling are clearly established, and complaints and responses to them are documented, monitored and reported to management and other stakeholders.

Reviewable

There is an avenue for both internal and external review of a complaint outcome by people other than the original decision maker. Complainants are informed about these avenues.

Respect and support

All people making complaints and involved in the process are treated with respect and engaged in the process are far as practicable. The organisation can provide support for complainants in assisting them to make their complaint. The organisation will take reasonable steps to ensure that complainants are not adversely affected because of a complaint made by them or on their behalf. The organisation ensures that staff are property empowered to implement an effective complaints handling system

Continuous Improvement

The organisation responds to and learns from complaints made as part of continual quality improvement.

^[1] Consistent with the Australian standards on complaints handling in organisations (Guidelines for complaints handling in organisations (AS ISO 10002:2014)[A/NZ S5] and adapted from the Ombudsman Western Australia.