|
Sometimes, especially in hardship cases, a customer might come back to us with the same issue they raised in a previous complaint.
Perhaps they’ve received a disconnection warning notice again, or they're having trouble negotiating a payment plan after a previous one has failed.
We don't automatically open or re-open a case in this circumstance.
If the customer's present difficulty stems from their failure to make payments according to the payment plan agreed in the previous complaint, we won’t re-open it unless the customer:
- makes a payment (one that is affordable) beforehand;
- undertakes to make regular affordable payments;
- agrees to work with a financial counsellor during the course of the investigation.
Where a customer doesn't make the payment as agreed, a senior manager at EWOV will consider whether it’s appropriate to re-investigate the matter.
If there's been a change in the customer's circumstances—such as a death in the family or the loss of a job—we would re-open. If nothing has changed, we probably wouldn't.
Declining to investigate is not a course of action we take lightly. But, where no payments are made, we believe it's the appropriate course of action—given EWOV is independent and not on the 'side' of either the customer or the company.
However, we're aware that many of you are advocates for your clients and we appreciate the difficulties associated with your work.
To help you help your clients, we thought it would be useful to explain EWOV's processes in this type of case.
Return to the Message from the Ombudsman.
|
|
|