Our Customer Focus

Service Standards

Bexley has put in place the following Corporate Service Standards. These are minimum standards, and departments are free to develop their own service standards that exceed these minimum requirements.

Service standards are not just about our speed of response. They are about offering a quality service when we do respond.

Telephone

All telephones should be answered within 15 seconds (equivalent of 5 rings).
Unanswered calls should be minimised.

Voicemail &
Answer phones

Where Voicemail / Answer phones are used, messages should be returned within two hours or within that day at the latest.

Letters

All correspondence should be replied to in full within 10 working days of receipt
An acknowledgement should be sent within 3 days if this target cannot be met explaining when a full reply can be expected.

E mail

Team emails should receive an automatic acknowledgement with an indication of when a full reply can be expected.
Where email is comparable to a straightforward telephone enquiry a reply should be sent within 24 hours.
Where a fuller reply is required this should be explained to the customer and a full reply to be sent within 10 working days.

Face to face

Customers should be greeted on arrival or within 5 minutes if there is a queue.
Customers should wait no longer than 15 minutes to have their enquiry dealt with.
If waiting times are likely to exceed these target customers should be told why and the likely waiting time.

Complaints

If the formal process is followed complaints should be acknowledged within 3 days and a full reply be sent within 10 days at eachs stage.
Appeal hearings should take place within 20 days.