Source · SPSO (Scottish Public Services Ombudsman)

Business Stream

SPSO (Scottish Public Services Ombudsman) Partly Upheld Reference 201609660 Sector Water Category policy/administration Decided 01 December 2017

Full decision

Summary

Mr C is the secretary for a business. Mr C complained that Business Stream had failed to notify the business of their increased water usage, that they had failed to properly investigate the cause of the issue and that they did not deal with his complaint in line with their procedures.

We found that, once they had become aware of the high water usage, Business Stream did make appropriate contact with the business to alert them of this. We received evidence of the call that was made to the business, and we also noted that the business received invoices that illustrated high meter readings. We also found that Business Stream took appropriate action in investigating the cause of the leak, in line with their responsibilities, and that they contacted Scottish Water to investigate the issue further when it was appropriate. We did not uphold these aspects of Mr C's complaint.

However, we found that Business Stream did not advise Mr C clearly of his rights to escalate his complaint to stage two of the complaints procedure. We also found that they failed to issue Mr C with a final response to his complaint. We, therefore, upheld this part of Mr C's complaint.

Recommendations

In relation to complaints handling, we recommended: Communication regarding a customer's complaint should clearly explain the stage at which the customer's complaint is being handled. Staff should also ensure that customers have received a final response to their complaint before referring them to SPSO.

We have asked the organisation to provide us with evidence that they have implemented the recommendations we have made on this case by the deadline we set.

Related reading

View Decision Report 201609660 as a PDF (12.28 KB) Updated: March 13, 2018

View original on SPSO (Scottish Publ… website

Other decisions involving Business Stream

Reference Date Summary Outcome
202101632 01 Mar 2023 C complained about Business Stream's communication regarding their account. There was also disagreement between C and Business Stream over the … Resolved / Early Resolution
202103298 01 Nov 2022 C runs a small business and was unhappy with the way Business Stream managed their account. In particular, C was … Upheld
201900738 01 Dec 2021 C complained that Business Stream had not billed their business accurately. C said that they had been told by an … Not Upheld
201806006 01 Jul 2021 C purchased a former business premises for conversion to domestic property. At the time of the original purchase the business … Resolved / Early Resolution
201808488 01 Nov 2020 Mr C complained that Business Stream incorrectly arranged for a meter to be installed at a vacant property belonging to … Not Upheld
View all decisions for this organisation