Annual Report on Internal Complaint Handling 2022
Introduction
The municipality of West Maas en Waal does everything in its power to ensure that its services run as smoothly as possible. In most cases, these services are provided to the satisfaction of all concerned. Sometimes, however, things do not go as planned and a citizen submits a complaint. After all, this is human work and mistakes can be made. The challenge is to minimize these mistakes, learn from these complaints, and, if necessary, adjust the services accordingly.
1 Legal framework for the right to complain
Anyone can file a complaint about the way in which an administrative body or an employee has behaved towards them or another person in a particular matter. This is laid down in Article 9 of the General Administrative Law Act (Awb).
Complaints about incorrect treatment may include:
- improper treatment with regard to manners and decency;
- failure to respond to correspondence (in a timely manner);
- failure to provide information that has been requested;
- failure to fulfill commitments made.
The right to complain does not apply to:
- reports: reports regarding undesirable situations in public spaces (e.g., defective street lighting, loose sidewalk tiles, or uncollected garbage);
- objections and appeals: disagreement with (the content of) a decision;
- policy: decisions made by the college or council to perform public tasks in a certain way.
The complaints procedure cannot be used if:
- it concerns a complaint that has already been dealt with in accordance with the complaints procedure; or
- the complaint concerns an event that took place more than one year ago.
A complaint is submitted to the administrative body against which the complaint is directed.
Initially, attempts will be made to resolve the complaint through informal channels. Often, a meeting with the complaints coordinator or the employee or manager concerned will suffice.
Sometimes it is not possible to resolve a complaint through informal channels. In that case, the complaint will be dealt with internally in accordance with the West Maas en Waal municipality's Internal and External Complaints Handling Regulations. The complainant and the person against whom the complaint is directed are heard by the complaints handler. The complaints handler draws up a letter of settlement in which he communicates his findings and conclusion to the complainant.
If desired, a complainant who is dissatisfied with the outcome may submit the complaint to the Municipal Ombudsman; the external complaints handling procedure.
2 Internal complaint handling
The majority of the work performed by the complaints coordinator in 2022 involved speaking with complainants (by telephone), coordinating and coordinating the handling of complaints, mediating (and resolving) formal and informal complaints, consulting with other complaints coordinators, and communicating and corresponding with the ombudsman. The complaints coordinator is not authorized to handle complaints, but is the point of contact for complaint handlers if they have questions about the handling of a complaint. Complaints are preferably handled informally.
All complaints are treated confidentially. This means that no names may be mentioned in an annual report, nor may any other information be published that could be traced back to the complainants. However, a brief description of the complaints is provided so that you can get an idea of what the complaints relate to.
In 2022, six complaints were received.
Internal complaint handling
- The complaint
Failure to respond (in a timely manner) to questions about a traffic situation.
Method of resolution
Formal complaint handling: complaint was declared valid. A response or answer should have been provided earlier. - The complaint
Failure to respond (in a timely manner) to a report of an allegedly dangerous traffic situation.
Method of resolution
Formal complaint handling: complaint upheld. Communication about the report and the follow-up process should have taken place earlier. - The complaint
No or insufficient response to questions about the tree felling permit procedure.
Method of resolution
Informally resolved: explanation provided about the conditions for granting or refusing tree felling permits. - The complaint
Method of communication regarding an application for an event permit.
Method of resolution
Informally resolved: explanation provided about the procedure. - The complaint
Method of communication regarding questions about a parking situation.
Method of resolution
Informal resolution: explanation provided about the communication and commitment to provide a substantive written response. - The complaint
No response to question about improper land use.
Method of resolution
Formal resolution: complaint upheld. A response should have been provided earlier.
Complaints received over the past four reporting years
| Reporting year | Number of complaints |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2019 | 4 |
| 2020 | 4 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2022 | 6 |
3 External complaint handling
Annual Report 2023
Annual review Municipal Ombudsman
If the person submitting a complaint disagrees with how the complaint has been handled, they have the option of submitting the complaint to an ombudsman. Every municipality is required to establish an ombudsman (Article 9:18 of the General Administrative Law Act and Article 81p of the Municipalities Act). The municipality of West Maas en Waal has a local ombudsman, Ms. M.J. van Dasselaar, and a deputy ombudsman, Ms. S. Stokman-Prins.
Complaints are first dealt with internally before anyone can submit a complaint to the ombudsman. The municipal ombudsman is obliged to report on its activities for the year 2022.
The annual report of the Municipal Ombudsman shows that three reports were made to the Municipal Ombudsman. She referred these individuals to the municipality for the internal complaints procedure. Two individuals subsequently reported to the complaints coordinator; these reports were not recorded as complaints and were handled satisfactorily outside the complaints procedure.
Furthermore, none of the internal complaints handled in 2022 led to a complaint being submitted to the Municipal Ombudsman.
Recommendations Municipal Ombudsman
The Municipal Ombudsman's 2022 annual report contains three recommendations:
In communications, actively inform citizens about the internal complaints procedure and explain to them that the ombudsman will only handle complaints once they have been dealt with internally.
The municipal website contains detailed information about how to submit a complaint and the procedure involved. This clearly shows that the internal procedure must first be followed before the ombudsman can become involved.
Regularly drawing the attention of employees and managers to the propriety requirements, the complaints procedure, and the role of the complaints coordinator.
Information is regularly shared via internal communication channels.
Bringing aggression protocols to the attention of employees and managers on an annual basis.
West Maas en Waal has an aggression protocol. In addition, an Aggression Intervention Team has been in place since October 2022. The team consists of six employees who can be called in if, for example, employees do not feel safe during a conversation with a citizen.
4 Conclusion and learning effect
It can be concluded that the number of complaints submitted is low on average on an annual basis. In recent years, the number of complaints has remained around the same, at four complaints per year.
No general conclusion can be drawn about the content of the complaints.
Most complaints in previous years were resolved through informal procedures. Experience has shown that this is the most effective way of handling complaints.
In 2022, three complaints were dealt with informally. A conversation with the complainant proved sufficient to dismiss or resolve the complaint. In three cases, the formal internal complaints procedure was followed.
In recent years, this has not led to any follow-up proceedings with the Municipal Ombudsman. The manner in which the complaint was handled was apparently satisfactory and did not give the complainant any reason to submit the complaint to the Municipal Ombudsman as well.
Given the relatively low number of complaints, contact between citizens and employees of the municipality of West Maas en Waal is generally good.
The complaints in 2022 can all be traced back to the subject of communication. It remains important that employees pay attention to their attitude and behavior towards residents and that agreements are honored. An adequate response to signals from citizens and clear communication can prevent the need to follow a formal written complaints procedure. Good contact between citizens and employees often prevents a formal procedure. Providing citizens with complete and timely information remains essential.
Finally, the complaints coordinator would like to take this opportunity to thank the complaint handlers, the ombudsman, and the defendants for their dedication and solution-oriented attitude. This means that in most cases, complaints do not need to be formalized.
Beneden-Leeuwen, May 3, 2023.
The complaints coordinator for the municipality of West Maas en Waal
E. (Esther) Bakker