COMPLAINTS HANDLING POLICY

1 ST MAY 2020

Overview

It is important to us that our customers have a right to make a complaint. This is our complaints handling policy that applies if you are dissatisfied with our products or services or any dealings you have with us. The procedures and assistance set out in this policy are provided free of charge to our customers.

These procedures are used to handle customer complaints and also to assist us to identify, record, report and analyse customer complaints and to determine complaint causes. Terms that have a defined meaning in the Telecommunications (Consumer Complaints Handling) Industry Standard 2018 (the CCH Standard) have the same meaning in this policy. In addition, references in this policy to you, our customer, have the same meaning as “consumer” in the CCH Standard.

Making a complaint

If you have a complaint with our products or services or any dealings you have with us, you can make a complaint by any of the following methods:

by calling our customer service team during the hours of 9am to 5pm Sydney time (Monday to Friday) on 1300 677 406.

• by e-mailing us at any time at [email protected]
• by submitting an online complaint at any time https://totalsolutionsit.com/complaints
• by writing to us at any time at 649 Dean Street Albury 2640.

Special requirements

If you need special assistance because of special needs or a disability, because you do not speak English, or because of financial hardship, please let us know and we will provide help to formulate, make and progress your complaint.

Customer representative

You may nominate an advocate or authorized representative to make and handle your complaint.

How we handle complaints

In order to handle complaints in a fair and efficient manner, we may classify complaints into different categories according to the seriousness, complexity, urgency and particular nature of the complaint. Where possible, we will aim to resolve your complaint at the time you make it. Otherwise, we aim to resolve your complaint within 15 working days. If your complaint is urgent, we aim to resolve it within 2 working days (or we will notify you of a longer timeframe if it cannot be resolved within 2 working days).

We will aim to resolve complaints about alleged billing errors no later than the end of the billing period immediately following your current billing period. If we cannot meet the above timeframes, we will keep you updated on the progress of your complaint until we have resolved it.

We generally use the following steps to handle complaints:

1. We will acknowledge your complaint immediately (if made in-store or over the telephone), or otherwise within 2 working days of receiving it.
2. We will give you a reference number to track the progress of your complaint.
3. We will make an initial assessment of a complaint, based on the relevant circumstances. You will need to provide all relevant details applicable to your complaint.
4. We may resolve a complaint on good-will or commercial grounds, without a detailed investigation. Otherwise, we will investigate the complaint according to the seriousness, complexity, urgency and particular nature of the complaint.
5. Where appropriate or where you have requested, we may escalate the complaint, for example to a senior case manager.
6. Once we have investigated the complaint, we will provide you with a response and a proposed resolution. We will provide confirmation of a proposed resolution of a complaint, within 15 working days of receiving the complaint.
7. For urgent complaints, we will provide confirmation of a proposed resolution of the complaint, and if you accept the proposed resolution, implement that resolution, within 2 working days of receiving the complaint.
8. If we cannot resolve your complaint within the timeframes set out in this policy, we will contact you and explain the reasons for the delay and give you a new proposed timeframe for resolution.

If you agree with our proposed resolution, we will aim to implement it within 10 working days (unless you agree to a different timeframe or we need to take additional steps to resolve the complaint). We will only implement the resolution once it has been accepted by you. If you are not satisfied with our proposed resolution, you may further escalate the complaint to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO), at www.tio.com.au. Please note that certain telecommunications matters outside the TIO’s jurisdiction may be handled by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (www.acma.gov.au), or in the case of broader consumer protection matters, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (www.accc.gov.au).

We will provide confirmation that your complaint has been resolved, as soon as practicable after we have completed our investigation of the complaint. Once the above steps have been completed, we will close the complaint. If we are unable to get in contact with you about your complaint, we will write to you at your last known address, and provide details of previous contact attempts and provide you with an invitation to contact us within 10 working days to discuss your complaint. If you do not contact us during this period, we will close the complaint.

We will not cancel your service for the sole reason that you were unable to resolve the complaint directly with us or if you have pursued external dispute resolution. If you have any queries about this policy, please contact us using the above details under the heading, “Making a complaint”.