The Victorian Public Transport Industry's Complain Management Policy
1 Introduction
1.1 Introduction
As an industry, we are committed to providing an excellent service to our customers. We value feedback as it helps us to understand our customers’ experiences and how we can continue to meet their needs.
We acknowledge your right to raise a complaint and to receive a timely and appropriate response to your concerns.
1.2 Application and definition
This Policy applies to all complaints received by us and managed through our Complaint Management Process1.
A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction about our products, services, staff, or the handling of a complaint.
1 This Complaint Management Policy and the Complaint Management Procedure Guide are collectively referred to in Franchise Agreements as the Complaints Handling Procedure.
1.3 Our complaint management principles
Our Complaint Management Process is based on guiding principles that aim to:
- Enable and welcome complaints
- Manage complaints effectively, efficiently, and fairly
- Promote a culture of learning from complaints and making improvements.
1.3.1 Enabling complaints
We recognise your right to complain, and we are committed to addressing your concerns fairly and efficiently. Our staff are well trained and will actively assist you through the process.
We recognise that some people have particular needs or require extra assistance when making a complaint. We provide a range of accessible options to make the process as easy as possible.
We will be flexible when dealing with your complaint and will communicate with you in the most convenient and efficient way. We will use complaint handling methods that help us to resolve your complaint as quickly as possible.
1.3.2 How to contact us if you have a complaint
For up-to-date information on how to contact us please visit www.ptv.vic.gov.au, or call Public Transport Victoria (PTV) on Free call 1800 800 007 (6am – midnight Sunday – Thursday, and all night on Friday and Saturday).
1.3.3 Managing the complaint
We aim to acknowledge and respond to your complaint promptly and recognise that some issues require urgent action. We assess each new complaint to determine the most appropriate initial action and give priority in accordance with the urgency and/or severity of the issues raised.
Those complaints assessed as requiring urgent attention will be responded to within three business days. All other complaints will be responded to within seven business days. If this is not possible, we will keep you updated of the expected timelines and the reason for any delays.
Our Complaint Management Process is fair to all parties and ensures issues are handled in an objective and unbiased way. You have avenues for review if you are not satisfied with an outcome, including internal managerial review by the PTV Customer Resolutions Team and an independent, external review by the Public Transport Ombudsman.
We will protect your privacy and manage your personal information in accordance with privacy laws and our privacy policies.
1.3.4 Learning and improving
Complaint data is an important source of information to measure how we are performing. Our staff regularly analyse complaint data to find ways to improve how we operate and how our services are delivered. We present monthly reports on complaint trends to senior management and participate in the quarterly Customer Feedback meetings convened by PTV. We conduct root cause analysis on complaints to identify systemic issues, and work with entities across our industry to improve your experience and prevent them from recurring.
We also work hard to continually improve our Complaint Management Process. We have effective quality assurance processes in place to regularly review the quality of complaint handling and to provide feedback to staff. PTV performs an annual compliance audit and will seek input from customers about their level of satisfaction with our Complaint Management Process.
2 Our complaint management process
We have a three-tiered Complaint Management Process (see tiers below). This enables complaints to be resolved quickly by frontline staff where appropriate and also provides opportunities for your concerns to be considered further if you are not satisfied with our initial response.
Registration and early resolution
We record your complaint details in our customer feedback database and assign a unique reference code to the complaint.
We consider your concerns and work out the best way to assist you. Often, we are able to resolve your complaint immediately. If the matter cannot be resolved straight away, our specialist Complaint Management Team will consider the matter further.
Exploring resolution options and investigating - Complaint Management Team
Our Complaint Management Team will assess your complaint and look for ways to resolve the matter with you. If necessary, we will investigate the issues you have raised.
Urgent complaints*
- We will provide a response to your complaint within 3 business days of receipt. If we need longer to consider the matter, we will explain this to you.
- * As an industry, we have agreed that some issues will be dealt with urgently. These generally relate to imminent safety issues, emergency situations, accessibility, and property damage.
Standard complaints
- We will provide a response to your complaint within 7 business days of receipt. If we need longer to consider the matter, we will explain this to you.
If you are satisfied with our response, your complaint will be closed. If you are not satisfied, you may escalate the complaint for further consideration, including to the Manager of our Complaint Management Team.
Escalation - Customer Resolutions OR Public Transport Ombudsman
Customer Resolutions
You may choose to have your complaint reviewed by the PTV Customer Resolutions Team. If you remain dissatisfied following the PTV Customer Resolutions process, you may lodge a complaint with the Public Transport Ombudsman.
Public Transport Ombudsman
You may choose to refer your complaint to the Public Transport Ombudsman for external consideration (without going through the PTV Customer Resolutions process first). The Public Transport Ombudsman is an independent dispute resolution body that can assist in the resolution of disputes about public transport in Victoria.