Difficult customer behaviour
There is a difference between difficult customer behaviour and unreasonable or unacceptable behaviour. Often a customer exhibits frustration that is issue-related and not intended as a personal attack against a council officer. Examples include instances of:
- controlled anger
- controlled frustration, or
- controlled agitation
Council appreciates that customers may become angry or frustrated from time to time. It is not unreasonable for a customer to express controlled anger or frustration, or to make complaints about council’s decisions, staff or processes.
Managing difficult customer behaviour
When dealing with difficult situations, staff should not avoid their responsibilities to uphold council’s customer service expectations. Staff are expected to respond to the customer’s needs professionally, and to make attempts to quickly and efficiently resolve the issues that is causing the customer’s frustration.
When dealing with difficult customer behaviour staff should:
- make reasonable efforts to calm the customer
- focus on the issue at hand rather than taking offence to the customer’s anger or frustration
- consider your body language e.g. open posture, active listening, calm breathing, maintain a calm demeanour, stay grounded and centered.
- remain calm, professional and courteous
- consider seeking advice or assistance from other staff members or supervisor who may be better equipped to resolve the situation and
- consider scheduling a later meeting with the customer (if appropriate) to allow time for further guidance and information to be obtained.
If a staff member feels that they do not have the capacity or training to confidently handle difficult situations they are required to seek appropriate training by discussing their needs with their supervisor.
Where necessary, supervisors should offer guidance to staff when dealing with difficult situations and encourage staff to attend any known trouble situations in pairs.
Unreasonable customer behaviour
Council has an obligation to use resources efficiently and effectively. While council acknowledges a customer’s entitlement to make requests and complaints, it reserves the right to cease responding to customers that continually exhibit unreasonable customer behaviour.
Unreasonable customer behaviour include:
- requests that place unreasonable demands on council’s staff
- requests that place unreasonable demands on council’s resources
- unreasonable persistence
- unreasonable lack of cooperation
- requests or complaints based on unreasonable arguments.
Managing unreasonable customer behaviour
Council will not continually respond to requests that place unreasonable demands on staff or other resources. If staff believe they are experiencing unreasonable customer behaviour they should:
- communicate effectively with the customer to ensure they fully understand the customer’s request or complaint
- request additional information from the customer if required
- inform the customer of council’s expectations regarding the making of requests or complaints and outline how the request or complaint will be managed
- record all relevant communication on council’s electronic records management system and other relevant databases as required and
- discuss the situation with the relevant supervisor, manager or director.
In extreme circumstances, staff may politely end unproductive phone calls, meetings and encounters if the customer continually places unreasonable demands on them or other resources. If this occurs staff should notify their supervisor or manager as soon as possible after the incident and make appropriate records of the incident.
Managing customers who continually make unreasonable demands
Unreasonable demands can significantly and unreasonably divert council’s resources away from core functions and create an inequitable allocation of resources for other customers. Customers who make unreasonable demands include those who display unreasonable persistence, continually use unreasonable arguments or demonstrate an unreasonable lack of cooperation.
If in the opinion of the CEO, director or manager a customer continually makes unreasonable demands, the authorising officer may:
- write to the customer advising of council’s concerns and request the customer to limit and focus future requests
- write to the customer advising that if they continue to place unreasonable demands on the organisation then council may not respond to any further correspondence and may only act where in the opinion of the designation officer, the correspondence raises specific serious issues or
- write to the customer instructing them of preferred method of communication and notify them of the nominated staff member who will deal with their enquiries.
Unacceptable customer behaviour
ouncil considers the following behaviour to be unacceptable:
- threatening or offensive behaviour (including written threats).
- verbal abuse (including swearing at staff, accusations, attack on credibility, racist or sexist comments).
- vulgar expressions or gestures.
- damaging objects (for example kicking, defacing or destroying property).
- physical assault or violence.
- bullying, harassment or intimidation.
- entering restricted office areas.
- threatening self-harm.
- out-of-hours harassment of staff.
- social media posts on council’s sites that constitute unacceptable behaviour on social media platforms including offensive language, personal attacks, harassment, discrimination and defamation.
Managing unacceptable customer behaviour
Council does not tolerate threatening, rude or aggressive behaviour towards its staff under any circumstance. If in the opinion of any staff member, a customer is exhibiting unacceptable behaviour the staff member may:
- warn the customer that if the behaviour continues or occurs again at any time, the conversation, interview or meeting may be terminated, and
- terminate the conversation, interview or meeting thereafter if the rude, abusive or aggressive behaviour continues or occurs again after the warning was given, or
- immediately remove themselves from the situation without providing an initial warning if they believe they are in immediate danger or physical harm or serious harassment.
Where a conversation, interview or meeting is terminated due to unacceptable customer behaviour the staff member must notify their supervisor, manager and/or director as soon as possible. The staff member should also make a file note of the incident and record the incident on council’s records management system and on any other relevant databases.
If warranted by the situation, staff should also complete an incident report with council’s risk department.
Where appropriate, staff should consider using the following strategies to manage unacceptable behaviours:
- ask another staff member to assist or be present when dealing with the customer
- maintain professionalism and a polite, assertive demeanour
- avoid being confrontational towards the customer
- continually assess the risk at each stage of the interaction
- advise the customer when their behaviour has exceeded council’s standards and provide the customer the opportunity to moderate their behaviour
- ensure the safety of members of the public and other staff members
- activate office duress alarms and await assistance from a member of the identified response team
- call a member of the response team if the situation allows for it
- contact Victoria Police if necessary.
Serious cases of unacceptable behaviour amounting to genuine threats, serious harassment, physical force or assault should be referred to the Victoria Police immediately.
If in the opinion of the CEO, director or manager a customer exhibits unacceptable behaviour towards council’s staff the authorising officer may:
- write to the customer advising that their behaviour towards council staff is unacceptable
- notify the customer that only a nominated staff member will deal with their enquiries or
- in situations involving written correspondence, notify the customer that council may not respond to any future correspondence that includes unacceptable content.
Escalating situation
When the behaviours outlined above do not abate, a director may, in consultation with the Chief Executive Officer, notify the customer in writing that one or more of the following actions may be taken if the behaviour continues:
- the customer may be excluded from verbally addressing council and community meetings, on legal advice
- only a nominated council officer will communicate with the customer in future
- the customer must make an appointment with the nominated council officer if they wish to discuss any matters
- the council will require all further communication to be put in writing.
The time period for this notification will be at the discretion of the director or CEO. The notification must detail specific reasons as to why this action is/may be taking place.
If in the opinion of the CEO, any correspondence sent to council, or council Officers contains personal abuse, inflammatory comments or material clearly intended to intimidate, this correspondence will be returned to the sender and not otherwise acted upon.
Notification to councillors
Councillors should be notified of a decision by the chief executive officer to restrict a customer’s access to staff when:
- those restrictions are expected to be in place for a period longer than three months
- it is reasonable to assume that a councillor may have contact with the customer or
- the customer is prohibited from council’s premises.