Use cases

Find the complaints customers never call complaints (UK)

Reads every call, chat and email against the complaint definition (the FCA's by default, or your own) and files each likely complaint by product and cause.

Try it on this example

Example · A complaint fixed in the chat and never logged

Channel (call transcript, chat, email, letter, social): chat

The whole contact

[09:14] Customer: Hi, my rent standing order didn't go out on the 1st. It's been set up for two years and nothing has changed. My landlord has now charged me a £30 late fee. [09:15] Agent (Ellie): Hi, thanks for getting in touch, and I'm sorry to hear that. Can I take your full name and the last four digits of your card so I can find the account? [09:15] Customer: Sam Taylor, 4417 [09:17] Agent (Ellie): Thanks Sam. I can see the standing order to R Hughes Lettings for £725 was due on 1 September. It didn't go out because of a problem on our side with standing orders due that weekend. The money was in your account. [09:18] Customer: So it's your mistake. I only found out when the letting agent rang me. That's the second time this year I've had to chase a payment with you. [09:19] Agent (Ellie): I understand, and I'm sorry. I've sent the £725 now as a faster payment, so it should reach R Hughes Lettings within two hours. Your standing order is still set up for 1 October. [09:20] Customer: And the £30? Who pays that? [09:21] Agent (Ellie): As the payment failed because of our error, I've credited £30 to your account to cover the late fee. You'll see it today. [09:22] Customer: ok fine. thanks. just sort your system out please, I shouldn't have to check every month [09:22] Agent (Ellie): Understood. Is there anything else I can help with today? [09:23] Customer: no that's all [09:23] Agent (Ellie): Thanks for chatting with us, Sam. Have a good day.
  1. Does the customer express dissatisfaction with something the firm did or failed to do?Yes98%
  2. Under the complaint definition in the context, is this contact a complaint?Yes97%
  3. What harm does the customer say they have suffered or may suffer?Money lost or charged100%
  4. Which of the firm's products is the contact about?Payments and transfers100%
  5. What is the customer mainly dissatisfied about?Payment or transaction error100%
  6. Did the agent handle the customer's dissatisfaction as a complaint?Not handled as a complaint100%
  7. How does the customer's issue stand at the end of the contact?Resolved and accepted100%
  8. Does the customer ask for money back, compensation or a goodwill payment?Yes99%
  9. Does the customer say they have gone, or will go, to an ombudsman, regulator, lawyer, the press or social media?No91%
  10. Is the dissatisfaction about a payment service?Yes98%
  11. Is there enough in the text to tell whether the customer is dissatisfied, and with what?Yes99%

These are real answers stored from one run on this example.

The prism behind it

Find the complaints customers never call complaints (UK)11 questions

Fields

  • Channel (call transcript, chat, email, letter, social)
  • The whole contact

Context

Rule set: UK, FCA Handbook, the Glossary definition of a complaint and DISP 1. The firm is a UK retail bank. The text is one whole customer contact: a call transcript or chat with speaker labels, or a single email, letter or social message. Complaint definition (FCA Glossary): "any oral or written expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not, from, or on behalf of, a person about the provision of, or failure to provide, a financial service or a redress determination, which alleges that the complainant has suffered (or may suffer) financial loss, material distress or material inconvenience". It must also relate to an activity of the firm that the Financial Ombudsman Service covers. How the firm applies it: - The customer does not have to use the word complaint. Mild, polite or sarcastic dissatisfaction counts: "not happy tbh", "this is the second time", "I have been on hold for an hour". - A complaint put right during the same contact is still a complaint. It is recorded, and may be closed with a summary resolution communication if it is resolved by the close of the third business day after it was received. - Dissatisfaction only with a third party the firm has no part in (a shop, a landlord, another bank) is not a complaint about the firm. Dissatisfaction with how the firm handled that third party's problem is. - A plain question or request with no dissatisfaction is not a complaint. "No complaints, thanks" is not a complaint. - Complaints about payment services (transfers, standing orders, direct debits, card payments and the payment functions of an account) have a 15 business day clock for the final response. Other complaints have eight weeks. Code applies the clocks. - Bodies a customer may escalate to: the Financial Ombudsman Service, the FCA, a solicitor, the press, social media. Worked examples: - Complaint: "Third time I have asked for this statement and still nothing." - Complaint: "You took the payment twice, can you sort it", even when the agent refunds it at once. - Complaint: "The app kept logging me out so I missed the transfer deadline and paid a late fee." - Not a complaint: "Can you tell me my sort code?" - Not a complaint: "The shop will not refund me, how do I raise a chargeback?", with no dissatisfaction about the firm. - Not a complaint: a survey answer of "fine" with nothing else.

Questions

  1. Does the customer express dissatisfaction with something the firm did or failed to do? Yes / No

    Read the customer's words across the whole contact. Count dissatisfaction however it is worded, including mild, polite or sarcastic remarks, and count it even when it was put right later in the contact. Do not count dissatisfaction only with a third party the firm has no part in, and do not count the agent's words. Yes: The customer says, in any words, that they are unhappy with something the firm did or failed to do. No: The customer asks, tells or thanks without saying they are unhappy with the firm.

  2. Under the complaint definition in the context, is this contact a complaint? Yes / No

    Apply only the definition and the notes in the context. The customer does not need to use the word complaint, and a matter put right during the contact still counts. Do not weigh whether the complaint is justified. Yes: The contact meets the definition in the context. No: The contact does not meet the definition: a plain question or request, or dissatisfaction the definition leaves out.

  3. What harm does the customer say they have suffered or may suffer? Choice

    Pick the main harm the customer describes in their own words.

    • Money lost or charged The customer says money was charged, lost, withheld, paid late or not received, or that they had to pay a cost because of the problem.
    • Distress The main effect the customer describes is worry, upset or anxiety, more than any cost or lost time.
    • Inconvenience The main effect the customer describes is time, effort, repeated contacts or disruption, with no money lost.
    • No harm described The customer describes no loss, distress or inconvenience, whether or not they are unhappy.
  4. Which of the firm's products is the contact about? Choice

    Pick the product the contact is mainly about, using the descriptions below.

    • Current or checking account The account itself: opening, closing, statements, account fees and everyday running, when no more specific option below fits.
    • Savings account A savings account or its interest rate, access or transfers into it.
    • Overdraft An arranged or unarranged overdraft and its interest or charges.
    • Credit card The credit card account: limits, interest, fees, statements and repayments.
    • Personal loan A personal or car loan: the application, repayments, interest or fees.
    • Mortgage A mortgage: the application, rate, repayments or arrears.
    • Payments and transfers Sending or receiving money from an account: bank transfers, standing orders, direct debits and international payments.
    • Debit card use Using a debit card: declined payments, card blocks, card disputes and chargebacks, and replacement cards.
    • Online and mobile banking Getting into or using the app or online banking, when no other product is at issue.
    • Branch, cash machine or phone service Service in a branch, at a cash machine or on the phone line, when no product is at issue.
    • Not about a product General service or conduct with no product named or implied.
  5. What is the customer mainly dissatisfied about? Choice

    Pick the main cause of the dissatisfaction, as the customer describes it. If the customer is not dissatisfied, pick No dissatisfaction.

    • Charges, fees or interest A fee, charge, interest amount or price the customer disputes or finds unfair.
    • Payment or transaction error Money sent, taken, credited, duplicated, delayed or missed wrongly by the firm's systems or staff.
    • Technical fault The app, website, card or phone line did not work, and no payment went wrong because of it.
    • Fraud or scam handling How the firm dealt with fraud, a scam, or a claim to be paid back after one.
    • Account block, restriction or closure The firm blocked, restricted or closed an account, or refused to open one.
    • A decision the customer disagrees with A declined application, refund request, claim or dispute outcome, other than the account decisions above.
    • Service and staff conduct Waiting, no call back, being passed between teams, rudeness, or wrong information from staff.
    • Arrears and collections How the firm handled missed payments, debt or collection contact.
    • Unclear information or terms Letters, statements, terms or explanations that were unclear, wrong or missing.
    • Unsuitable sale or advice The customer says a product was sold or recommended that did not suit them.
    • Data or privacy Personal data used, shared, lost or kept wrongly.
    • No dissatisfaction The customer raises nothing they are unhappy about.
  6. Did the agent handle the customer's dissatisfaction as a complaint? Choice

    Look only at the agent's words. Handling it as a complaint means calling it a complaint, saying it will be logged or passed to the complaints team, or giving complaint or ombudsman rights. Fixing the problem on its own is not handling it as a complaint.

    • Handled as a complaint The agent calls it a complaint, says it will be logged or passed to the complaints team, or gives complaint or ombudsman rights.
    • Not handled as a complaint The agent replies, and may fix the problem, but does none of those things.
    • No agent reply in the text The text holds only the customer's words, such as an email, a letter or a survey comment.
  7. How does the customer's issue stand at the end of the contact? Choice

    Judge from the last exchanges in the text. Acceptance can be reluctant: "ok fine" counts.

    • Resolved and accepted The firm put it right or explained it, and the customer accepts that, even reluctantly.
    • Fix offered, acceptance unclear A fix or an answer was given, but the customer does not say whether they accept it.
    • Not resolved Nothing was done, or the customer rejects what was offered or stays unhappy.
    • No agent reply in the text The text holds only the customer's words, so nothing was offered yet.
  8. Does the customer ask for money back, compensation or a goodwill payment? Yes / No

    Count a direct or an implied request, such as "who pays the fee?". Do not count a request only for an explanation or an apology. Yes: The customer asks for a refund, a fee back, compensation, a goodwill payment or a cost to be covered. No: The customer asks for no money.

  9. Does the customer say they have gone, or will go, to an ombudsman, regulator, lawyer, the press or social media? Yes / No

    Count the bodies named in the context and their equivalents: an ombudsman, a regulator or government agency, an attorney general, a lawyer or solicitor, the press, a public review or a social media post. Count a threat, or a statement that it is already done. Do not count a plain question about how to complain. Yes: The customer says they have gone, or will go, to one of these. No: No such body or step is mentioned as something the customer will do or has done.

  10. Is the dissatisfaction about a payment service? Yes / No

    Payment services are making or receiving transfers, standing orders and direct debits, card payments, cash withdrawals, and the payment functions of an account. The terms of credit, savings or a mortgage are not. The context says which clock code applies. Yes: The dissatisfaction is about one of these payment services. No: The dissatisfaction is about something else, or the customer expresses none.

  11. Is there enough in the text to tell whether the customer is dissatisfied, and with what? Yes / No

    Answer No when the text is cut off, too short, garbled, or so full of transcription errors that a careful reader could not judge it. Yes: A careful reader could tell whether the customer is dissatisfied and, if so, what about. No: The text is too incomplete or garbled to judge.

Lens columns

dissatisfaction_expressed, dissatisfaction_expressed_probability, complaint, complaint_probability, harm_stated, harm_stated_probability, product, product_probability, cause, cause_probability, handled_as_complaint, handled_as_complaint_probability, resolution, resolution_probability, redress_requested, redress_requested_probability, escalation_threat, escalation_threat_probability, payment_services, payment_services_probability, enough_information, enough_information_probability

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