Customer Complaint

Section 2 - EMERGENCY OPERATIONS

PURPOSE:

To provide a procedure for receiving and documenting citizen and employees positive feedback and complaints on the Maitland Fire Rescue Department service or personnel from the general public, private organizations, or public agencies.

PROCEDURE:

Administration and Guidelines

Positive Feedback

Positive feedback will be documented in the Customer Feedback Log located on the City database (K drive) and forwarded to all employees if identified. Positive feedback is forwarded to the Fire Chief for review and the Administrative Assistant for documentation.

Complaint Procedure

• Any citizen who wishes to file a complaint with the Maitland Fire Rescue Department shall be immediately assisted by the person receiving the complaint and their supervisor.
• Any person may register a complaint to the Fire Rescue Department, or its employees in person, by telephone, or in writing. Any supervisor or office staff member may accept a complaint.
• If the complaint is initiated against department personnel and received by staff when the particular shift in question is not on active duty, action shall be taken to notify the Battalion Chief responsible at the time of the incident. The Battalion Chief will report all findings to the Fire Chief. The Fire Chief will be responsible for ensuring resolution of all complaints against operational personnel. If the complaint is general in nature and does not involve a specific incident or crew, a member of Fire Administration will be responsible for investigating, resolving, and documenting the complaint.
• Upon receipt of a citizen complaint or inquiry, and even if resolved immediately, the complaint taker shall document the information in the Customer Feedback Log.
• The Battalion Chief who is assigned the complaint will document the following information on the Customer Feedback Log:

1. Customer Name
2. Contact Information
3. Date Reported
4. Date of Incident
5. Location of Incident
6. Nature of Complaint
7. Personnel Involved
8. Battalion Chief On Duty
9. Investigation Results
10. Resolution
11. Customer Follow Up
12. Crew Follow Up

• Resolution should be completed within 10 working days unless documented extenuating circumstances apply (example: an involved employee is on leave).
• During initial contact with a complaint, a supervisor may make a determination whether the conduct cited was proper or not. Battalion Chiefs and above are authorized to resolve the complaint to the satisfaction of the complaint, if possible by:

1. Resolving any misunderstanding leading to the complaint,
2. Correcting any deficiencies,
3. Counseling the employee regarding the reason for the complaint.

An attempt will be made to obtain a written statement from the complainant.

• If a complaint cannot be resolved during the initial contact with the complaintant, or if the complaint involves a significant breach of department policy, the complainant will be placed in contact with a member of Fire Administration. Upon completion of the investigation, a member of Fire Administration will contact the complainant to inform them of the investigation and resolution of the complaint.

PROGRAM EVALUATION:

At the end of each calendar year, the Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief will review all complaints and identify and track any obvious trends. This information will be reported to the Fire Chief.