itsual Complaints Handling
Overview
Complaints are both a customer obligation and a compliance control. Proper handling requires accessible channels, timely response, impartial investigation, and learning loops.
When to Use
- Designing regulated complaints processes
- Improving SLA performance and quality of outcomes
- Using complaint MI for conduct and product risk
- Exam preparation on customer treatment
Core Practices
- Define what counts as a complaint clearly
- Log all complaints with required data fields
- Investigate impartially; avoid defensive defaults
- Meet acknowledgment and resolution timelines
- Offer fair redress where appropriate
- Analyze themes and feed product/process fixes
- Report MI to governance forums
Principles
- Barriers to complaining are a compliance red flag
- Speed without fairness fails the spirit of the rules
- Repeat complaint themes indicate systemic issues
- Incentives must not discourage proper logging
Verification
- Definition and channels are clear and accessible
- Timelines and quality are measured
- Theme analysis drives remediation actions