8 November 2011
HMRC and DWP top list of most complained about public bodies in 2010/2011
DWP and HMRC top the list of most complained about public bodies in a new report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. The report also finds complaint handling across government to be 'inconsistent, haphazard and unaccountable'.
In her report, 'Responsive and Accountable?', Ombudsman Ann Abraham sets out the statistics relating to complaints about public bodies made to her office in 2010-11. The report also includes individual case histories which highlight some of the failures by public bodies and the results of a survey conducted into the different processes used by government departments and public bodies to respond to complaints.
The statistics show that that the DWP (1447 complaints) and HMRC (1219 complaints) were first and second in the list of public bodies based on the number of complaints received.
In her foreword to the report, the Ombudsman says -
'Disappointingly, this report reveals complaint handling across government to be inconsistent, haphazard and unaccountable, operating without any overarching design, overall standards or common performance framework. Such a situation is unhelpful for people who want to change their experience of interacting with a public service by making a complaint. It also means opportunities to improve public services through complaint handling are being missed.'
The Ombudsman goes on to say that, to counter these problems, there needs to be a shared understanding between the public, Government and the Ombudsman about what constitutes good complaint handling. The report states that this will not evolve further without strong leadership from the top which is committed to developing a culture across the Civil Service that values complaints.
You can find the annual reports of the Adjudicators Office and the Ombudsman in the tax credits research and reports section of this website.
Information about the Adjudicator complaints process and about taking a case to the Ombudsman can be found in the tax credits guidance section of this website.