Upon discovering an issue 64% of customers feel frustrated, but this rises to 74% if the process of making a complaint is made difficult, according to Complaints Outlook 2021, a benchmark insight report from advisory firm Huntswood.

What’s more, the study found, three out of four customers felt angry when they had to chase for an update on their complaint and did not receive a follow-up communication.

In the survey conducted by YouGov o behalf of Huntswood, only one in three customers rated the empathy skills of their complaint handlers as good.

Over 2,500 customers who had made complaints to a wide variety of sectors including property services, were quizzed as part of the research which Huntswood is flagging up to mortgage businesses as a guide to meeting and exceeding customer expectations.

Martin Dodd, CEO of Huntswood said: “We have found compelling evidence that the complaints journey offers significant opportunity for firms to deliver emotionally engaging experiences that drive customers to not only stay with an organisation, but to also become advocates.

“As we move forward into a period of change and challenge as a result of Covid-19, and with the expectation of increasing complaint volumes and customer vulnerability later in the year, the stakes are higher.

“Firms who are ready to meet this challenge and take hold of the opportunities presented will be in a good position to emerge strongly.

Key points

As well as customer responses the report also included insights from Huntswood’s bespoke research into the experiences of 500 complaint handlers and businesses. Here are some of the key points to emerge:

1. Make it easy for me to complain. 64% of customers feel frustrated when they first discover an issue, rising to 74% if the process of making a complaint is difficult.
2. Let me speak to the right person straight away. 80% of customers are retained when complaints are resolved within the first two days.
3. Show me I’m valued. 17% more customers will recommend the firm to others if they feel valued when making a complaint.
4. If it’s your fault, say sorry to me. Retention rates are 17% higher when firms say sorry when they admit fault.
5. Keep me updated. 3 out of 4 customers feel angry when they have to chase for an update on their complaint and do not receive one.
6. Don’t let me hear that it’s happened again. Customers want to be assured that their complaint has made a difference to how a firm operates.

Challenges and opportunities for firms

Firms interviewed identified three common challenges in delivering an excellent complaints experience, all exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic: increasing complaints volumes, increasing levels of customer vulnerability and financial pressures on firms creating a need to reduce costs.

However, these are balanced by three opportunities to improve the customer complaints experience:

1. An increasing use of technology and automation to support customer service teams, allowing them to keep customers updated and focus resource on areas where the human touch is most needed.
2. New ways of working allowing for more flexible resource capacity, increasing access to talented call handlers who can empathise with customers and resolve complaints quickly
3. Improvements in root cause analysis allowing firms to identify the cause of complaints and address the problem and prevent recurrence