Overview
The Locksmiths Guild of Australia Inc (LGA) recognizes the importance of complaints management as part of a framework for our members and their firms, their employees and contractors, their clients, suppliers, competitors, regulatory authorities and the general public. Complaints are inevitable; however we believe we are accountable for our actions and decisions. All members and external stakeholders have the right to complain and seek remedy for actions and decisions that adversely affect them.
Our Commitment
The LGA is committed to resolving customer complaints quickly and fairly, and we are committed to address and resolve issues as they arise. We support the right of our members and external stakeholders to have their complaints heard and actioned appropriately. We believe that all member and external feedback - both positive and negative - presents an opportunity for improvement.
Scope of this Policy
All written complaints, serious or unresolved telephone complaints, and complaints referred by external agencies must be recorded in the LGA membership database and managed in accordance with the LGA’s complaints management procedure.
Non-serious verbal complaints should be resolved by the Administrator of the LGA National Office or LGA National Secretary in accordance with the principles in this policy; these will not be recorded in the LGA member database.
Complaints Management System
The LGA adopts the following complaints management system:
FRONTLINE COMPLAINTS HANDLING
All complaints are directed to the LGA National Office, where less serious complaints are resolved in the first instance with the member involved. Written complaints, serious or unresolved telephone complaints will be referred to in the first instance to the LGA National Secretary and the relevant LGA Chapter Committee for internal resolution, with a written response required to the complainant within seven days.
INTERNAL COMPLAINTS RESOLUTION
The LGA Chapter Chairman and/or Secretary are to take the primary role in resolving the complaint with the member. Resolution may involve meeting(s) with the complainant and/or member and/or a written response. Should the Chapter Chairman and/or Secretary be unable to resolve the complaint, then the matter should immediately be referred to the National Executive for resolution.
All relevant data will be recorded in the LGA member data base.
DISCIPLINING OF MEMBERS
The member will be given written notice about an alleged breach of the LGA Code of Conduct asking the member to take remedial action within a certain timeframe and a show cause notice why the membership should not be cancelled.
Disciplinary action of members will be conducted in accordance with the rules set out in the LGA Code of Conduct, LGA Procedure for Handling Complaints and the LGA Constitution.
Transparency and Access
We are committed to making it easy for the general public to give us feedback by providing:
- Simple information on our web site about how to lodge a complaint and how it will be managed.
- Easy access to our complaints policy on the LGA Website.
Responsiveness
The LGA is committed to responding quickly and courteously to concerns raised by external stakeholders. Our complaints management procedure sets out a recommended response timeframe for a complaint about a member.
Objectivity, Assessment, and Action
The LGA is committed to ensuring complaints are dealt with fairly and objectively. All complaints are treated confidentially. All written complaints are assessed and recorded in our LGA member data base and objectively evaluated. The National Office Administrator, LGA National Secretary, relevant LGA Chapter Committees and at the last instance the LGA National Executive Committee, will investigate the issue and if necessary, complaints and/or complainants are referred to external agencies. Anonymous feedback is welcome however, identifying details will assist to properly investigate and resolve a complaint.
Feedback
We are committed to providing timely and open feedback to complainants about their complaint:
- We will let complainants know the outcome of their complaint as soon as possible after a decision is made.
- The LGA will always advise complainants about their internal and external review rights.
- Any feedback we receive will be used to improve our complaint handling procedures and processes.
Monitoring Effectiveness
We routinely monitor the effectiveness of our complaints management system to ensure we meet our policy requirements, as well as provide appropriate outcomes for our members and external stakeholders.
The LGA National Executive Committee is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of the LGA’s complaints management system. We also monitor complaint trends and outcomes with twice yearly reports to the LGA National Executive Committee by the LGA National Office administrator.
The LGA data base is used as a case management system to record and track complaints to ensure timely and accurate responses, as well as analyse complaint trends and outcomes.
Remedies
When a complaint is justified, we will undertake appropriate remedial actions that are fair to both the complainant and the LGA member. Our remedies aim to restore the complainant to the position they would have been in had the complaint not been necessary. We always endeavour to be consistent and where possible, try to resolve complaints at the outset.