Customer Feedback and Complaints
We are always keen to hear your feedback as this helps us to learn and understand areas where we are delivering services well and areas where we can improve.
Dissatisfaction and Informal Complaints
Our customer contact system and the way informal complaints/ dissatisfaction are recorded helps us get more out of the data we record when you call our Connect Contact Centre.
The most common reason for dissatisfaction is unresolved repairs and property related issues.
As we continue to work on the challenges caused by the pandemic, we know our repairs service has struggled to recover to its usual high standards. Whilst we can reliably deal with all emergency/ urgent repairs, the backlog of non-urgent repairs is higher than usual. This is due to a range of factors including delays in sourcing materials from suppliers and being unable to readily find contractors.
However, we are continuing to go through our backlog and expect our repairs service to return to normal in the coming months.
We know that a key area we need to work on is improving communication with our customers, particularly when there are delays to our repairs service delivery. We are currently developing our text message system to better provide you with regular updates when repair delays occur.
Despite these issues, we have maintained positive satisfaction scores from our customer feedback surveys when repairs are completed at our properties. If you receive a customer feedback survey about our services, please rake the time to leave a comment with your score.
Formal Complaint Investigations
The quickest and most effective way to resolve complaints/dissatisfaction is usually to work quickly with our managers and put things right.
However, if you remain unhappy with how your complaint has been handled, you can ask for your complaint to be escalated to the formal process. More information can be found here>>.
Throughout April to June 2022, we closed 60 complaint investigations through our formal complaints process.
In nine cases, the customer remained unhappy with the investigation and response, escalating their complaint to the final ‘Review’ stage of the complaints process. In one of the Review cases, the reviewing senior manager found additional service failure.
Complaints (Stage 1 investigation) Q1 – April-June 22
- Jigsaw North = 26
- Jigsaw Tameside = 28
- Jigsaw Midlands = 6
- Jigsaw Support = 0
Complaint investigations by department – Q1 Apri- June 2022
- Allocations/Lettings = 4
- Repairs – Planned/Investment = 6
- Repairs – Routine/responsive = 28
- Neighbourhood Safety (ASB) = 7
- Asset Management Environmental = 2
- Neighbourhood Tenancy Matters = 1
- Development = 3
- Income Recovery = 6
- Service Charge/Leasehold = 3
Complaint Outcomes – Q1 April-June 2022
- Complaint upheld (Service failure) = 18
- Complaint upheld in part (Part service failure) = 10
- Complaint not upheld (no service failure) = 32
Housing Ombudsman Service
We have received no determinations from The Housing Ombudsman during this reporting period.
Legal Disrepair Claims
A disrepair claim is another form of ‘complaint’ which is handled through a legal process. Many of the claims we receive are a result of ‘Claim Farmers’ who mislead people into taking out flimsy legal suits.
Claim farmers often sell the claims to lawyers who can make money on the back of a claim and any costs paid out go directly to the law firm. In a small number of cases, damages are paid to residents but only after large fees are removed from the law firm.
Disrepair (legal) claim outcomes for closed cases in Q1 April-June 2022
- Successfully defended by landlord = 30
- Settled (with costs) = 13
- Case dismissed at court = 1
- Court trials = 0
- Claim withdrawn = 1
We are committed to providing excellent service to our customers however we realise that things can go wrong. If this happens to you or if you feel our service hasn’t met your expectations, please let us know. We will always try to resolve your problem as quickly as possible.
We have a robust complaints process and compensation policy which is flexible enough to respond to cases as they arise without the need for escalating legal fees.
If you have any concerns about your property, or any unresolved repair issues, please contact us so we can to look to put things right for you and agree a resolution.
