Unacceptable customer behaviour policy

The safety of our customers and colleagues is always our main priority. This policy, supported by a procedure and training for colleagues, aims to help colleagues to deal with challenging and unacceptable behaviours, and to protect them from abuse.

We commit to developing a healthy and safe working environment and to promoting and supporting colleague wellbeing.

Who this policy applies to and what it covers

This policy applies to:

all Magna customers, people who live with them and their visitors.
anyone who comes into contact with our colleagues, customers and/or contractors.
behaviour and demands made at any time of the day, night or at weekends, regardless of whether the colleague is at work at the time.

The policy covers:

the behaviour and unreasonable demands which we find unacceptable.
how we will deal with unacceptable customer behaviour and unreasonable demands
how we will support colleagues who experience this behaviour. The policy is supported by a detailed procedure and training for colleagues.

Our unacceptable customer behaviour policy

We aim to have positive relationships with our customers and other people we come into contact with. However, sometimes our colleagues are subjected to behaviour from customers, or people we work with, which is challenging and unacceptable. This can make dealing with them, and providing services, especially difficult, dangerous, or intolerable.

We recognise that people may act out of character in times of trouble or distress. We do not view behaviour as unacceptable just because an individual is forceful or determined in their approach to us. However, the actions of customers who are angry, demanding or exceptionally persistent may result in unreasonable demands being placed on our time and resources, or unacceptable behaviour being directed towards colleagues. It is these actions that we consider unacceptable and aim to manage with this policy.

We will give our colleagues training, relevant to their role, to improve their knowledge, skills and confidence in handling unacceptable behaviour. We’ll also make sure colleagues understand this policy, know about lone worker safety, and know how to report and get support if they experience these types of incidents.

We are committed to supporting colleagues who experience unacceptable behaviour. We encourage them to talk to their manager as soon as possible to help identify any support needed.

What counts as unacceptable behaviour and unreasonable demands?

Unacceptable customer behaviour means two things: unacceptable behaviour and unreasonable demands.

Unacceptable customer behaviour may also be considered and/or managed alongside our Community Safety Policy and our Customer Complaints Policy.

As reflected in our Community Safety Policy, anti-social behaviour means (as specified in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014):

behaviour that has caused, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to any person.
behaviour capable of causing nuisance or annoyance to a person in relation to that person’s occupation of residential premises.
behaviour capable of causing housing-related nuisance or annoyance to any person.

Unacceptable behaviour

This is aggressive or abusive behaviour towards our colleagues. By

aggression we don’t just mean behaviour resulting in physical harm, it also includes behaviour or language that may make our colleagues feel afraid, intimidated, threatened, or abused.

Some examples of what we consider to be aggressive behaviour are:

Threats of violence or harm
Bullying
Physical violence
Personal abuse
Shouting or abusive language
Sexualised behaviour
Misogynistic behaviour
Harassment, including sexual harassment
Derogatory or discriminatory remarks (on the grounds of, but not limited to, ethnicity, colour, age, religion, political beliefs, disability, illness, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, learning difficulty, appearance, or employment status)
Malicious, derogatory or otherwise inflammatory statements, or unsubstantiated allegations e.g. about our colleagues and/or other customers. This includes comments and messages on social media platforms.

Unreasonable demands

What appears to be acceptable behaviour may become unacceptable if it negatively affects our ability to do our work. Behaviour may become unacceptable where demands are so persistent that they place an unreasonable burden on us and impact the level of service that we give to others. Examples of this include:

Excessive amounts of information requested or provided.
Unreasonably high level of service expected above our agreed service standards.
Excessive contact made to us.

Examples of what we consider to be unreasonable demands include:

Demanding a response within an unreasonable or unattainable timescale
Insisting on communicating with one employee and no-one else
An excessively high amount of contact
Repeatedly changing the substance of a complaint, or request for service, thereby preventing us from resolving the issue or issues.
Unreasonably complaining to us about matters that are not our responsibility.

How we deal with unacceptable behaviour and unreasonable demands

We will investigate each case that is reported to us, taking into consideration the nature, severity and frequency of the behaviour. We will use a reasonable and proportionate approach when dealing with reports of unacceptable customer behaviour towards our colleagues.

We will try to contact the customer responsible for the behaviour and explain what we found unacceptable, how we expect them to behave in future, and the actions we will take if they don’t.

We will also try to find out whether the customer has other issues that are contributing to their behaviour, such as poor mental health, learning difficulties or drug or alcohol dependency. Where appropriate, we will offer to refer them to a relevant agency for support.

When faced with persistent unreasonable demands, we may use ‘contact restrictions’ to manage the amount of contact. This may also include appointing a single point of contact within Magna.

In some cases, where there is a break-down in relations between Magna and a customer, we may seek to use an independent mediation service to help find a solution.

Where there is a risk to our colleagues or contractors identified, a warning flag may be applied to the customer’s account.

We will only share information with people who need it. For example, if we temporarily change the way we work with a customer, we will need to tell relevant colleagues and contractors about any new arrangements, but they don’t always need to know the reasons.

Where there are threats or violence, we may seek emergency legal action. This may include seeking an emergency ‘without notice’ Civil Injunction and/or possession proceedings.

In extreme cases, for example physical violence, threats or harassment, or where we believe a criminal offence has been committed, we will report incidents and share information with the relevant Police force and/or partner agencies (under Section 115 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998).

We will keep customers informed of our decisions, and the reasons for them, throughout the investigation.

Except when taking legal action against a customer or against their tenancy (actions which have their own defence and appeals processes and consequences), we will:

offer them the chance to appeal any decisions we make. We will explain how to make an appeal in our communications with them.
review any changes to the way we work with them after an agreed time (of between 3 and 12 months depending on the nature of the behaviour).

Responsibilities

The Head of Customer and Community Support is accountable for all aspects of anti-social behaviour and nuisance at Magna. They are responsible for the unacceptable customer behaviour policy, making sure that it meets all regulatory requirements and guidance, and is reviewed every three years. It will also form part of the annual review of health and safety activity.

The Safer Communities Lead is responsible for operational management of anti-social behaviour and nuisance investigations, the implementation of this policy, maintaining accurate data and reporting on incidents and actions in line with governance arrangements.