Complaints Standard. for Suppliers. Categorised as Basic (B or F)

Transcription

1 Complaints Standard for Suppliers Categorised as Basic (B or F) (UK version)

2 Contents Introduction 3 Definitions 3 1. Process, Procedures and Controls 5 2. Regulatory Standards 7 3. Employees 7 4. Publicising Complaints Procedures 8 5. Recording Complaints 8 6. Dealing with Complaints 9 7. Redress Management Information Root Cause Compliance with Complaints Process Annual Attestation Complaints Audits Changes to Services 14

3 Supplier Agreement Complaint Schedule SCHEDULE [ ] COMPLAINT HANDLING: UK Suppliers GUIDANCE NOTE: This schedule is for use with Suppliers providing services to Barclays, who support the Complaint handling process. The definitions used in the front end of the contract and in this document should be consistent - please amend the definitions used throughout the schedule accordingly. If the front end of the contract already includes any of the requirements set out in this schedule, those requirements may be deleted from this schedule, alternatively it may be cleaner to leave all requirements in this schedule. In any event, please check that nothing in this schedule conflicts with the wording in the rest of the contract. Please cross check the references in this schedule to those detailed in the front end of the main contract, and ensure these are correct and/or amended accordingly. Please review the square brackets within this Schedule, with your Business stakeholder before issuing to the Supplier, as these are Business Unit specific. Please action and remove all guidance notes before sending this schedule to the Supplier. (A) Introduction In 2001 regulatory standards came into force governing the way complaints are handled, with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) responsible for setting the regulatory standards and monitoring performance against them. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Responsibilities of Providers and Distributors set out responsibilities of firms to ensure fair treatment of Customers. Where Barclays outsources responsibility for the completion of activities/delivery of services, regulatory standards still apply, with the FCA holding Barclays accountable for any acts and omissions associated with the outsourced activities. It is therefore important for business units to establish and maintain a procedure to ensure contractual clauses are agreed with our Suppliers that require them to comply fully with the Group Complaints Policy and associated standards. The procedure must include roles and responsibilities, complaint handling requirements, Controls, recording and reporting requirements, access to MI and complaint files, and arrangements for attestation for compliance. This schedule reflects a series of principles which cover the handling of Complaints across the Barclays Group and its third party suppliers. Adherence to these principles is a mandatory requirement for UK banking entities and their third party/outsourced arrangements. To ensure Barclays can meet its obligations to the FCA, it is mandatory for all our Suppliers to adhere to the control requirements set out in this schedule; and that the experience received by the Customer from the Supplier, is both consistent and comparable to that delivered by Barclays. (B) Definitions Terms referred to within this Schedule shall have the following meanings: Business Day Definition: shall mean any day other than Saturday, Sunday or bank

4 Complaint Complaints Data Complaint Standard Controls Customer DISP Eligible Customer FOS FCA FCA Reportable Group Complaints Policy MI Nominated Delegate Non FCA Reportable Records Redress Refund Relevant Records Supplier System holidays; shall mean any Customer or third party expression of dissatisfaction whether justified or not and Complain and Complaining shall be interpreted accordingly; shall mean the data provision enabling compliance with FCA submission and reporting requirements as detailed in DISP; shall mean this Complaint Handling: UK Suppliers schedule; shall mean ongoing execution of any process, procedure or specific action taken to ensure the service provided matches Barclays requirements; shall mean a customer (direct or indirect) or potential customer of Barclays or any of its affiliates; shall mean the FCA rules on complaint handling FCA Dispute Resolution: The Complaints Sourcebook October 2001, as subsequently amended by the FCA from time to time; Shall have the same meaning as defined within the DISP; shall mean the Financial Ombudsman Service or such other agency or body which replaces it; shall mean the Financial Conduct Authority or such other agency(s) or body(s) which replaces it; shall mean a Complaint made by an Eligible Customer (able to refer a Complaint to the FOS) of any expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not, about any aspect of our business and it is not possible to resolve the Complaint by close of business on the Business Day following its receipt; shall mean the policy owned by Barclays, that governs the way in which Complaints are to be handled; shall mean management information; shall mean an individual or team within Barclays, who is the nominated a point of contact for any part of the Complaint handling process, as detailed in this schedule; shall mean a Complaint made by an Eligible Customer that is resolved by close of business on the Business Day following its receipt; shall have the meaning as defined in Schedule [insert number of Records Management Schedule]; shall mean a combination of compensation and goodwill gestures to account for distress and inconvenience and rectify subsequent issues arising as a result of the original error; shall mean reimbursements required to rectify the original error; shall have the meaning as defined in Schedule [insert number of Records Management Schedule]; shall have the meaning given at the beginning of the Agreement; shall mean an online Complaints management tool (such as Respond); and

5 Validation Tool shall mean an access database with queries built into it to check the completeness of the Complaints Data. (C) The Supplier shall comply with changes to the Complaints handing obligations set out in this Complaint Standard and elsewhere in the Agreement, subject to the Supplier giving its prior written consent to any such change (such consent shall not be unreasonably withheld). (D) The Supplier shall, in conjunction with Barclays, follow and document steps described by the Complaint Standard (as maybe amended from time to time) in the performance of their complaint handing obligations. This documentation must be provided to Barclays within 2 weeks from execution of this schedule and must include, as a minimum: (i) details of the organisational structure where responsibility for Complaints handling resides, showing names and role titles. The document should specifically advise who is responsible for Complaint handling procedures at the Supplier, set up and maintenance of the training and competency ( T&C ) framework and an appropriate and effective control and assurance framework, Complaints performance reporting and how the Supplier will notify Barclays of the Nominated Delegate from time to time; (ii) escalation route for issues should the nominated people be unavailable or fail to respond; (iii) identification of the policies, procedures, processes, training (inc. T&C scheme), communications and other documents which mitigate the risks and reduce the likelihood of Customers being treated unfairly; (iv) identification of MI that will show ongoing performance against the risks, root cause analysis of Complaints and identification of any emerging issues from Complaints; (v) an overview of the MI review process to ensure emerging risks and issues are quickly identified addressed and escalated as appropriate; and (vi) the governance and oversight framework in place to ensure complaints are managed in line with the Group Complaints Policy and all appropriate regulatory and legislative requirements, including the respective roles, responsibilities and accountabilities for the Supplier complaints management process and associated frameworks. 1. There must be adequate and effective processes, procedures and Controls, monitored for effectiveness which complies with the Group Complaints Policy and local regulatory requirements to promote a culture of fair treatment of Customers 1.1 The Supplier must have in place and operate Complaint handling procedures that are appropriate, effective, efficient, documented, agreed with those responsible for Complaint handling and comply with the Group Complaints Policy and all local regulatory requirements. The procedures must also be accessible to all staff involved or likely to be involved in handling Complaints, complied with and reviewed at least annually to ensure they are up to date and supplied to Barclays on request. The Supplier must provide their latest complaint policy which should include who is ultimately responsible for Complaints and who is responsible on an operational level. 1.2 If the Supplier is considering outsourcing of any part of the Complaint process, the Supplier needs to show what service levels are in place and how these are monitored. This must be approved by Barclays in advance, so a decision can be made on whether the Supplier may continue to deal with Barclays Complaints. 1.3 The Supplier must have an escalation point in place within Barclays to hand off Complaints. Barclays shall specify and communicate details of a Nominated Delegate who will also handle any Complaints regarding Barclays products or services. The Supplier must escalate to the

6 Nominated Delegate immediately a Complaint is received that meets any one of the below criteria: Where the Complaint is addressed to a Barclays Executive (the Supplier's discretion is required and only those Complaints deemed critical should be escalated); Where a Complaint is from the media or a Member of Parliament and thus could damage the Barclays brand; When the Complaint is from a 3rd party acting on behalf of a Customer e.g. a solicitor, the media, a trade association or a checking agency; Where the Complaint could result in high costs to Barclays; [Amount to be agreed as part of contract negotiation] Where funds are blocked under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002; Where the Complaint amounts to a claim of irresponsible lending; The Complaint received is in relation to a marketing suppression; Where there is a threat of suicide or a claim that a suicide has happened because of the Barclays actions; An allegation that Barclays has acted illegally (for example breach of the Equality Act 2010 or the Disability Discrimination Act 2005); and An allegation of mis-selling, should be fast tracked as follows: (i) An allegation against an area of Barclays should be escalated into the relevant Barclays customer relations department, as may be advised from time to time; (ii) An allegation against an area of the Supplier should be fast tracked into the relevant Barclays Customer Relations department, as may be advised from time to time Where appropriate, Barclays will take ownership of these Complaints. 1.4 Where the Supplier identifies a potential fraud or confirmed fraud, the nominated person within Barclays (as advised from time to time) must always be notified within 24 hours in the first instance to mutually agree next steps and hand off points. 1.5 Complaint management systems and procedures must be in place (whether owned by Barclays or the Supplier) to facilitate the full and accurate recording of all Complaints (FCA Reportable and Non FCA Reportable)at the earliest opportunity and capture the following information: Date of initial receipt of the Complaint; Customer name and contact details; A Complaint product and category that allows an FCA product and category to be determined (if Complaints are being reported directly to the FCA, then the FCA product and Complaint category lists shall be adopted); Customer type (personal/business Customer); Reference number / Customer identifier; What the Customer is complaining about; Action taken to address the Complaint and by whom; Details of the investigation, assessment and decision relating to the Complaint; Remedial actions and Redress payments made; All communications with the Customer (verbal and written) relating to or connected with the Complaint, including whether or not Customer acceptance has been obtained; Resolution date confirming if Customer acceptance has been obtained or not; Customer feedback;

7 Outcome including reason for Complaint occurring and whether the Complaint was upheld; Whether the Complaint was referred to a regulator/independent arbitration service; Any follow up action e.g. individual Complaint root cause analysis required and / or action required addressing the potential impact on other Customers; and Date Complaint is closed. 2. Any relevant legal, regulatory, voluntary code and alternative dispute resolution provider requirements, including internationally recognised standards, relating to Complaints must be met or exceeded 2.1 The Supplier must be able to distinguish between FCA Reportable and Non FCA Reportable Complaints. 2.2 The Supplier must make Customers aware of any rights to refer unresolved disputes to an alternative dispute resolution provider as appointed by the local regulator. 2.3 Following issuance of a final response letter to the Customer, should the Customer subsequently refer the Complaint to the FOS and the Supplier fails to reach agreement with the FOS decision, the Supplier will pay all costs imposed by the FOS. 2.4 The Supplier must ensure that previous decisions are consistently applied throughout the business- e.g. FOS decision if applicable and fed back directly to those involved in the handling of the Complaint (where appropriate). 2.5 Where the Supplier is regulated and accountable for the provision of a product, service or process, the Supplier must provide Barclays with a copy of their half yearly Complaints report to the FCA. 3. Employees must be competent to recognise and deal with Complaints effectively 3.1 The Supplier must ensure Complaints are investigated by a member of staff with sufficient knowledge and competence who was not directly involved in the matter which is the subject of the Complaint. 3.2 The Supplier must ensure all staff with direct Customer contact (oral or written) must be adequately trained before undertaking any unsupervised Customer contact. This training must include the Supplier complaint handling policies, procedures, processes, systems, root cause and regulatory requirements, (as applicable), including but not limited to understanding the importance of handling Complaints fairly and effectively. The Supplier must keep adequate training and competency scheme records (which have been approved by Barclays, as appropriate) of all Complaint handling training staff undertake. The Supplier must ensure that every member of staff handling Complaints completes the required annual accreditation and records are maintained. The Supplier must also ensure adequate and effective provisions and controls are in place to monitor the ongoing competence of staff handling complaints, and to take action where competence falls below the required standard. 4. Complaint procedures must be well publicised, clear and easily accessible to Customers via their preferred mode of communication 4.1 The Supplier complaints process must be published, easy to understand and accessible by existing and potential Customers. The process must be publicised and advise how the Supplier fulfils its

8 obligation to handle and resolve Complaints, together with route for further appeal both internally and externally (if applicable). The process must be accessible with no charge levied on Customers making a Complaint. 4.2 It must be possible to make a Complaint through all channels (including: telephone, letter, , face-to-face, fax etc). All Complaints must be handled consistently across all channels. 4.3 Terms and conditions provided to Customers and inserted into point of sale material shall refer in writing to the availability of the internal complaint handling procedures and the Customer s right to take their Complaint to the FOS. 4.4 The Supplier must be capable of making the process accessible to those with specialised needs e.g. visual or hearing impairments in line with other products or services provided. 5. Complaints must be dealt with promptly, consistently and fairly: resolving all Complaint issues completely at the earliest opportunity 5.1 The Supplier must resolve as many Complaints as possible at the point of entry either immediately or at worst by close of business on the Business Day the Complaint is received. If a Complaint is from a third party (MP, solicitor, media etc.) on behalf of a Customer it must be escalated as agreed in paragraph 1c. Where the Supplier advises Barclays of such a Complaint, Barclays will work with the Supplier to resolve the Complaint, to the satisfaction of Barclays. The Supplier must agree with Barclays a speed of resolution target to handle Complaints, and implement appropriate and effective controls to monitor and report against this target. 6. Compliance with Complaints process 6.1 Complaint handling must be supported by a robust, risk-based control framework and quality assurance process, focussing on delivery of fair outcomes to Customers, as well as meeting operational processes and all appropriate regulatory and legislative requirements. 6.2 The quality assurance framework requirement along with any associated incentives and consequence management arrangements will need to be approved by Barclays, as appropriate. 6.3 The Supplier must have appropriate Controls in place to ensure compliance with the Group Complaints Policy, which includes but is not limited to: The timeliness, consistency and effectiveness of the Complaint handling process; That staff are competent in the application of the process; That all relevant regulatory and legislative requirements are met; That a good Customer experience is delivered; The investigation, decision making, Redress, record keeping, clarity and quality of response is appropriate; and The effectiveness of these Controls and their operation is reviewed regularly. 7. Complaint Audits 7.1 Barclays will have the right to audit the Supplier against this Complaints Standard at any time and to see copies of the Suppliers internal assurance documentation to ensure that they are complying with this Complaints Standard. Barclays will provide a minimum of four weeks notice of an intention to audit the Supplier.

9 8. Changes to the Services 8.1 The Supplier shall give Barclays a minimum of 60 days prior notice of any changes to the Suppliers services or the way in which the Supplier provides the Services, which may impact the Supplier s ability to comply with the Complaint Standard.