INTRODUCTION

This policy sets out Steelway Fensecure’s standard in relation to customer care. Steelway Fensecure’s aim is to provide a high level of service which satisfies customer needs and can be measured by the companies dedication to quality and value. We review these guidelines annually and monitor our performance in order to improve the service we provide.

ITEMS COVERED

This policy applies to all customers of Steelway Fensecure Ltd and covers the following:

• Contacting us
• Responding
• Using the information
• Record
• Complaints

RESPONSIBILITIES

Staff are responsible for ensuring that customer service meets the requirements of this policy. All contractors have a responsibility to ensure that both they and their staff also meet Steelway Fensecure’s standard of customer service.

CONTACTING US

You can phone, write, e-mail, fax or visit our offices. Our contact details can be found on the contact page.

RESPONDING

No matter what type of contact is made with Steelway Fensecure Ltd, staff should respond:

• Quickly
• Fairly
• In a courteous, helpful manner
• By ensuring that they, or an appropriate colleague, takes responsibility for following through and resolving or dealing with the matter
• By giving as much information as possible, including feedback

Contact by phone

• In normal working hours, the phone should be answered within 3 rings, if staff are not available, their phone should be answered by a colleague (by call diversion or transfer) within the target time, as a last resort an answering system can be used, but the message must be as helpful and informative as possible.

Contact in writing (letter or fax)

• Any written contact requiring a response should be responded to within 5 working days of receipt, resolving the issues raised. When staff are absent arrangements must be made to deal with their letters and faxes within the target time. It is acknowledged that some issues will be impossible to deal with within 5 working days – with such issues, after the initial response (which must always be within 5 working days of contact), the matter must be resolved or dealt with as quickly as possible.

Contact by Email

• Any email contact requiring a response should be responded to within 5 working days of receipt, resolving the issues raised. When staff are absent arrangements must be made to deal with their letters and faxes within the target time. It is acknowledged that some issues will be impossible to deal with within 5 working days – with such issues, after the initial response (which must always be within 5 working days of contact), the matter must be resolved or dealt with as quickly as possible.

Contact Face-to-Face

• Wheelchair Users:
• Sit down to talk to a wheelchair user, so they do not have to strain to see you.
• Do not lean on a person’s wheelchair. It is part of their personal space.

• Visually Impaired People:
• Identify yourself when first speaking to a visually impaired person.
• Guiding someone – allow the person to hold your arm (instead of you holding theirs), so they are on control. Do not move away without telling them.

• Hearing Impaired People:
• Speak slowly and clearly.
• Lip Reading – always look directly at the person.
• Lip Reading – make sure your face is well lit. Keep hands away from your mouth and speak normally and clearly.
• Minimise background noise.
• Have notepads ready for exchanging notes.

• People With Learning Difficulties and Mental Health Conditions:
• Speak slowly and clearly.
• Be patient and listen carefully – do not correct or speak for the person.
• If you do not understand, ask the person to repeat what they said.
• Ask questions which require yes or no answers is possible.

• People with companions:
• Talk directly to the disabled person, not their companion.

RESPONDING (GENERAL)

• Staff should identify themselves by name and department
• Unless there is a good reason not to, staff should personalise letters with their own name and signature.
• In any contact with customers, staff need to be aware that they become the face, the voice or the written word representing Steelway Fensecure Ltd.

• Any response to written correspondence must include:
• thanks for or acknowledgement of the correspondence
• a statement of who is dealing with the issue
• a statement of what is being done and, if possible, timescales involved
• a contact name (and contact numbers) for queries if this is different from the name at the bottom of the response
• In addition to all contacts being dealt with efficiently and with appropriate acknowledgement, we must 'follow through' - let customers know what is happening or how an issue has been resolved.
• Members, staff and customers generally should receive feedback on customer contact.
• Examples of feedback methods include newsletters & bulletins on the companies’ website.
• Feedback should include the use that the company or its individual services have made of customer contacts - have services improved?
• Customers' satisfaction with Steelway Fensecure Ltd and its services is likely to increase if they believe that the company does listen, learn, and improve.
• If it is clear that a contact has adopted a 'scatter-gun' approach (i.e. a similar letter, fax or email has gone to more than one department), all known points of contact should liaise to ensure a consistent response.
• Each point of contact should respond separately - no contact should be ignored on the assumption that someone else is dealing with it.
• If possible and if thought appropriate, one reply can go into detail and the other responses can refer to that detailed response

USING THE INFORMATION

• Every contact should be looked on as a useful source of information.
• Such information could potentially be used to improve services. 
• Information is only useful if it is managed in such a way that it is:
• recorded
• evaluated
• used by managers

RECORD

• Departments are encouraged to record as much relevant and useful information as possible from all their contacts, whilst bearing in mind that there is no need to record information just for the sake of it.
• We must keep to the principles of data protection, and information should be de-personalised wherever practicable.
• As with all information, it is important both to ensure and maintain the accuracy of information, and to prevent information being misused.

COMPLAINTS

• If a contact involves a complaint against staff, the investigation of the complaint must involve informing the member of staff at the earliest practicable and appropriate opportunity, giving him or her a chance to have their say, and keeping him or her informed of the progress of the investigation.
• If a contact involves a complaint regarding a service or product we have supplied the details should be recorded immediately onto the companies Non Conformity Report. In addition the manager(s) of the department(s) involved should be notified and they should update the Non Conformity Report to ensure the complaint can be tracked, and the information given on the Non Conformity Report can be used to analyse and improve systems, services and products. The manager of the department or authorized personnel should keep contact with the customer to keep them updated and informed.

21/07/08 (Health checked by ACAS 10/09/08)