Each month, we look closely at the complaints and service requests we receive from customers. This helps us identify what’s working well, where things have gone wrong and, most importantly, how we can improve our services.
Here’s what we found in August:
How many complaints did we get in August?
- We received 33 Stage 1 complaints
- We received 3 Stage 2 complaints (where a customer remained dissatisfied after receiving their Stage 1 response)
- We also received 34 service requests – issues that could be resolved quickly without progressing through the formal complaints process
Stage 1 complaints increased compared with 23 in August last year, while service requests reduced from 43 to 34. So far this year, we have received 115 Stage 1 complaints, compared with 92 at the same point last year.
Although overall dissatisfaction remains within the range we would normally expect when compared with the number of jobs we complete, the increase in Stage 1 complaints is higher than expected. We are carrying out further analysis to understand what is driving this increase and identify where improvements are needed.
What were customers telling us?
Our analysis of complaints and service requests identified the most common themes as:
- Delays and slow resolution – 29 references
- Repeat repairs or unresolved issues – 21 references
- Process or administrative failures – 20 references
- Communication failures or lack of updates – 19 references
- Quality of work or workmanship – 17 references
- Missed appointments or attendance failures – 14 references
- Property condition or suitability – 9 references
- Customers feeling ignored or not listened to – 7 references
The strongest theme in August was the time taken to get things resolved. Customers told us about overdue work, extended waits, repairs that had not been fully resolved and delays arranging follow-on work or obtaining materials.
We also saw customers telling us they felt ignored or not listened to. When we looked more closely at these cases, this was often connected to delays in processes and customers not receiving the progress or resolution they expected, rather than being a separate issue. We will continue to monitor this closely.
How quickly did we respond?
The average response time for a Stage 1 complaint during August was 3 working days, which is well within the Housing Ombudsman’s target of 10 working days.
We also did not refuse any complaints during August.
Complaint outcomes
During August, we responded to 37 Stage 1 complaints, of which 22 were upheld.
What do we mean by “upheld” and “not upheld”?
Upheld – We found that something went wrong and the complaint was justified. This could be because we didn’t provide the service we should have, made a mistake, caused unnecessary delay or failed to meet our own standards. When a complaint is upheld, we explain what went wrong and what we will do to put things right.
Not upheld – After investigating, we found that we had followed the correct process and acted appropriately. This doesn’t mean we don’t understand the customer’s concerns, but it means we did not identify a service failure or find evidence that we had done something wrong.
Compensation
During August, we awarded £1,869.28 in compensation, made up of:
- £1,844.28 relating to Stage 1 complaints
- £25.00 relating to service requests
- £0 relating to Stage 2 complaints
The largest reasons for compensation were delays in completing work (£905) and process failures (£599.28). Other compensation related to staff behaviour, communal maintenance, property condition, damp and mould and missed appointments.
Learning from August
The clearest message from August is that getting the job done is only part of the customer experience – how we manage the journey matters too.
Delays were the most frequently identified issue, but our analysis shows how delays can create other problems. A repair taking too long can lead to repeat contact, missed or rearranged appointments, a lack of updates and ultimately a customer feeling that nobody is taking ownership of their issue.
For repairs delivered by Ian Williams, the main themes were delays, unresolved or repeat repairs and missed appointments. Complaints relating directly to North Star processes and services focused particularly on process or administrative failures, lack of updates and unresolved issues. For 0800, delays, communication and process issues were the main themes.
Our year-to-date analysis also shows that process complaints and time to complete have increased more than expected, and these will form part of our investigation into the increase in Stage 1 complaints. Encouragingly, communication issues have increased at a lower rate than expected.
We’re using this feedback to:
- Investigate the increase in Stage 1 complaints, including the growth in complaints relating to process and the time taken to complete work.
- Focus on reducing delays and long-running cases, particularly where customers require repeat visits or follow-on work.
- Strengthen ownership and follow-up, so customers know what is happening and who is responsible for progressing their issue.
- Continue working with our contractors on delays, missed appointments, communication and repair quality.
- Monitor the increase in Stage 2 complaints to understand why more customers are escalating their concerns.
- Pay particular attention to customers feeling ignored or not listened to, recognising that this can be a symptom of delays, poor communication or a lack of clear ownership.
- Continue using AI-assisted thematic analysis alongside our existing complaint reporting to help identify emerging patterns and areas for improvement earlier.
Complaints provide valuable insight into how customers experience our services. While we aim to get things right first time, when something does go wrong we want customers to tell us. This gives us the opportunity to put things right, understand what happened and use that learning to improve services for everyone.
