Complaints Officer

Basingstoke/Hybrid

You will be responsible for helping us consistently deliver an exceptional service that puts the fair treatment of the customer at the heart of the business. As a Senior Complaints officer, you will assist the complaints Team leader to inspire, mentor, and lead the complaints handling team to provide a best-in-class complaint handling service. This role will be engaging with customers, colleagues, and management to ensure complaints are fully investigated and that we deliver fair customer outcomes in adherence with FCA regulations in a professional and timely manner.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for delivering good customer outcomes that are consistent with Consumer Duty

• To investigate and resolve customer complaints in accordance with internal procedures and timescales, regulatory guidelines and Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) principles.

• Manage personal delivery of decisions and recommendations to resolve customer's problems and diffuse potential risks to business reputation and customer satisfaction.

• Maintain central records of complaints and decisions/outcomes with a view to identifying opportunities to improve service to customers. This includes upkeep of the Complaints CRM.

• Abide by all regulatory and compliance requirements in carrying out the requirements of the role, informing stakeholders where relevant e.g. Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

• Thoroughly analyse Management Information (MI) to identify trends, issues etc, to highlight opportunities to improve our service and reduce complaints.

• Keep sufficient records to demonstrate due considerations to the TCF outcomes

• Liaise with all departments enabling complaints to be resolved.

• Send letters to complaint customers in accordance with regulatory timescales.

• Work Compliance email queue, investigating and resolving enquiries from customers and insurers and other departments.

• Work in accordance with any KPIs as notified from time to time.

• Effectively manage workload and time.

Relationships

• Working and building relationships with the Compliance, Complaints & QA teams.

• Responsible for the supervision of the Remediation Team

• Assistance and support with growing and maintaining these relationships can be sought from the Complaints team leader and the Complaints and Remediation Manager

Knowledge, Skills & Experience

• Experience gained within a similar complaint handling role or regulatory role within the financial services arena

• Excellent written and oral communication skills

• Previous financial services sales experience within the direct sales environment.

• IT literate - especially with MS Word, Outlook and Excel

• A willingness to learn a working knowledge of the FCA handbook, in particular Insurance Conduct of Business (ICOBs), DISP, PRIN (in particular Treating Customers Fairly).

Key Competencies

• Customer focused.

• Attention to detail, accuracy and the ability to prioritise to tight deadlines

• Excellent communicator with a calm and patient outlook

• Accuracy in gathering and recording of all information with great attention to detail.

• Ability to analyse information and make clear decisions

• Ability to recommend actions to prevent future complaints

• Commercially aware

• Strong presentation skills

• Tact, discretion and respect for confidentiality

• A clear telephone manner and excellent letter writing ability

• The ability to communicate with all levels of staff & management • Proactive, not reactive, approach to work

• The ability to work in a team and lead from the front

• Prepared to go the extra mile to complete work

• Thrives on activity and enjoys working in a fast-paced environment. • Punctual, flexible and a positive 'can-do’ attitude.

Qualifications

• Educated to GCSE level or equivalent

• Previous complaint handling experience.