comments, complaints and compliments policy. - Genesis Housing ...

COMMENTS, COMPLAINTS ANDCOMPLIMENTSPOLICYDOCUMENT STATUSSCOPEUnclassifiedThis policy sets out Genesis Housing Association's approach tomanaging complaints from customers.This policy does not cover complaints from landlords who ownproperties we manage, such as private landlords whose properties areleased for the purposes of providing temporary housing, or from otherbusinesses we contract with.VERSION NUMBER 2.0REASON FOR REVIEWAPPROVED BYGenesis Way Programme reviewCSGAPPROVAL DATE 4 December 2012EFFECTIVE FROM 10 June 2013ACCOUNTABLE DIRECTORPOLICY OWNERPOLICY AUTHORLaurice Ponting, Executive Director of CommunitiesJohn Pender, Head of Customer EngagementLaura SmithDATE OF NEXT REVIEW 10 June 2016STAFF CONSULTATIONComplaints review consultation undertaken with:ComplaintsProperty ServicesHousing ManagementVoids and AllocationsTemporary HousingCare and SupportContact CentreContractsPage 1 of 10

RESIDENT CONSULTATIONEQUALITY IMPACTASSESSMENT (EIA)Customer Accounts (including leasehold)SalesDevelopmentGenesis CommunityComplaints review consultation undertaken with:ComplainantsRegional Committee membersCOMPLETION DATE December 2012TYPE OF EIAUNDERTAKENInitialPage 2 of 10

y email, letter, phone, fax or in person. The email address iscomplaints@genesisha.org.ukSupportWe accept complaints in any language. If a customer needs help to put theircomplaint in writing, or needs an interpreter to help them make a verbalcomplaint, we will make the necessary arrangements for this on request.Properties managed by agentsIf a complaint relates to an agency providing a service on behalf of GenesisHousing Association, the customer must finish the agency’s complaintsprocedure before making a complaint to us.Time limitsComplaints must be made within six months of the matter occurring, unless it hasonly recently become known or concerns an on-going delay. We may acceptolder complaints at the discretion of the manager responsible for the service.Complaints received by executive or board membersWhere a member of the Genesis Executive or the Board receives a complaint,they will pass it on to the Contact Centre to be processed in accordance with ourprocedure. Responding officers should send a copy of the final response at anystage to the relevant member of the executive or board.ExclusionsIf the issue is not a complaint within the definition of this policy, we will deal with itthrough the relevant alternative procedure.This includes:• a first request for service, information or an explanation of our policies andprocedures• neighbour disputes or anti-social behaviour, unless the complaint refers toour failure to deal with the disagreement appropriately• issues regarding hate crime or domestic violence• a claim being dealt with by our insurers• issues where a resident has commenced legal action against us• a dispute against the amount of rent or service charge being charged• appeals against policy decisions.How we will deal with complaintsWe will deal with complaints impartially, objectively and professionally. Making acomplaint will not result in any adverse consequence such as removing aservice. We will take ownership, apologise where we have made a mistake andaim to resolve the complaint to the customer’s satisfaction.Page 5 of 10

Initial contactCustomers may make a complaint to anyone in the organisation. We will try todeal with the issue right away at first point of contact. If the member of staffreceiving the complaint cannot resolve it within our standard enquiry timescale ofthree days, the complaint will be formally logged and referred to the relevantservice.InvestigationWhen we log a formal complaint, we will acknowledge it within 24 hours, andrefer it to the relevant member of staff. They will contact the customer within twoworking days to establish what they need for resolution and to agree a timescale.We will check whether they need any kind of support, and we will explain theprocedure.It is expected that most complaints can be resolved within 10 working days, butthere may be times when it is necessary to agree a longer timescale. All formalcomplaints must receive a written response within 28 days outlining any futureaction to be taken if resolution within that timescale is not possible.If the timescale we agree needs to be changed for any reason, we will consultthe customer.We will provide a full written response in plain English. It will contain a summaryof the complaint, our response including any action we are taking, an apology ifappropriate, and details of how to appeal against our decision.AppealIf the customer believes we have not provided them with an adequate response,or they believe that our response is wrong, they can appeal. On receipt of anappeal, we will contact them to establish the reasons. If we cannot easily resolveany outstanding actions, the appeal will be referred to an Investigations Officer.After we establish the reason, the Investigations Officer will either: Refer the complaint back to the service with a request to reconsider all orspecific parts of the complaintInvestigate the matter and review the original decisionAdvise that no further action will be taken, if they decide that the complainthas been dealt with fairly, and in accordance with our policies andprocedures at the formal stage.If the decision is taken to refer or to investigate, the person responsible for theappeal response will contact the customer to agree timescales. We will provide afull written response in plain English. It will contain a summary of the appeal, ourresponse, an apology if appropriate, and confirmation that they have nowcompleted our complaints process.The timescales for appeals are as follows:Page 6 of 10

Type of appealReferral back to serviceIndependent investigationNo further actionTimescale10 working days28 days5 working daysThe Investigations Officer will decide which of these options to pursue. Thisdecision will be based on the suitability of the route according to the informationavailable to them and not on the preference of the customer.It may occasionally be necessary for a member of staff who is not anInvestigations Officer to conduct the independent investigation, for examplewhere the appeal is with regard to how an Investigations Officer handled an initialcomplaint. In these circumstances a deputy director, head of service or memberof the executive will carry out the investigation.CompensationCompensation, where appropriate, can be paid at any stage in the complaintsprocess. All compensation payments should be made in line with ourCompensation policy and authorised by someone with the relevant budgetaryauthority.Complaints about a member of staffIf a complaint is made about the conduct of a member of staff, the individual(s)will not be asked to investigate. Their line manager will investigate and will keepthe individual member of staff informed in line with our policies on staff conduct.Details of individual performance management action plans will not be discussedwith residents.Suspected abuseIf something leads the person managing the complaint to suspect that abuse istaking place, they should refer to our Safeguarding policies and procedures.Vexatious or abusive complaintsComplaints must be made in a reasonable manner. We will not accept thecomplaint where the behaviour of the customer has become unreasonable – forexample, if they are being threatening or abusive in any way. Where a residentmakes repeated complaints about the same issue, with little or no newinformation, we will treat the subsequent complaints as follows.If the customer has not exhausted our internal complaints process, we willescalate their complaint to the next stage. Where we consider the originalcomplaint to have exhausted our complaints process, they may apply to theombudsman. If they continue to send correspondence regarding the complaintonce we advise the matter is closed, we will advise once more that we will notenter into the matter further without significant new information. Any furtherPage 7 of 10

correspondence should be logged against the customer, but the respondingofficer should not send a response.Anonymous complaintsIf we receive an anonymous complaint, this may highlight a problem with the wayresidents perceive a service, or it might raise a ‘whistle-blowing’ issue that needsto be followed up. We will therefore record, investigate and monitor anonymouscomplaints in the same way that we treat comments.Page 8 of 10

Media involvementIf the complainant refers to a media story, the responding officer must refer to thePress and PR team for advice in line with our media handling protocol.Alternative dispute resolutionWhere a complaint has not been resolved at the point of the customer’s initialcontact with us, we may consider using mediation or adjudication. Whethermediation or adjudication is used will be decided on a case-by-case basis. Thecustomer can refuse mediation and insist that the complaint be dealt with throughthe formal procedure only.6 EXTERNAL APPEALS AGAINST COMPLAINT RESPONSESCustomers and applicantsIf a complaint has reached the final stage of our procedure and they still believeour response is incorrect or incomplete, tenants, leaseholders and applicants canrequest a referral to the Housing Ombudsman by a designated person. Thisdesignated person could be any MP in England, a councillor for the localauthority for the property, or a tenant panel recognised by Genesis.Alternatively, if the complainant waits 8 weeks, they can contact the ombudsmandirectly. They can be contacted at:Housing Ombudsman Service,81, AldwychLondonWC2B 4HNTel: 0300 111 3000We will follow any recommendations made by the Housing Ombudsman.Any actions recommended by the designated person will be passed to therelevant head of service for consideration.Local authorities/Care commissionCustomers in temporary housing can also complain to their local authority.Customerss in receipt of services such as floating support or domiciliary care canrefer their complaint to:• the relevant local authority supporting people team for complaints about asupport service; or• the Care Quality Commission for complaints about registered careservices.Charity commissionCustomers receiving services from our charitable foundation, GenesisCommunity, can refer their complaint to the Charity Commission.Page 9 of 10

7 MONITORING AND LEARNING FROM COMMENTS, COMPLIMENTSAND COMPLAINTSGathering feedback from our customers on their experience of our services isimportant. We use this feedback to improve the service we provide. We will keepand analyse all complaints, compliments and comments we receive and willmonitor timescales for responding to them. We will use diversity analysis tounderstand the nature of our complaints.We will provide regular reports on the quantity of comments, compliments andcomplaints submitted, and on the lessons we have learned from them. We willreport this information to senior management teams, the Board and tocustomers.8 TRAININGAll staff will be appropriately trained to provide high quality, customer-focusedservices. Staff who handle complaints will be trained to manage them effectively.9 PUBLICISING OUR POLICY AND PROCEDURESOur Comments, Compliments and Complaints policy and the process for makinga complaint will be publicised and easy to access. We will publicise our approachin a variety of formats, including large print, audio, Braille and other languages onrequest.10 RELATED DOCUMENTSInternal• Compensation policy• Anti-social behaviour policy• Harassment policy• Safeguarding policies• Domestic violence policy• Code of conduct (HR)• Disciplinary procedure (HR)• Whistleblowing Policy (HR)Relevant operational policies and procedures, occupancy agreements andhandbooks.External• Housing Ombudsman: Complaints Procedures – Good PracticePage 10 of 10