The new Customer Service Law that has just been approved in Spain , promises to establish minimum quality parameters, which companies will have to cover, in order to offer consumers personalized, accessible and inclusive attention.
In addition to other aspects, the norm will establish restrictions for the use of automatic response systems, will ensure assistance to individuals in vulnerable situations and will disclose the evaluation of consumers on the quality of the service received, therefore, all those companies that have not yet they had started the path towards excellence in customer experience, now have a golden opportunity to embark on it and stand out from the competition.
But… What exactly does the Customer Service Law regulate and which companies and sectors does it affect?
We tell you all the details!
Who does the new Customer Service Law affect?
As we have been saying, the Plenary Session of Congress recently approved the new regulations, whose objective is to regulate customer service , to improve the consultation and resolution periods for incidents or claims.
The law will enter into force at the beginning of 2024 and will be mandatory compliance, for all those companies that provide basic services of general interest, such as: water supply and distribution and energy, passenger transport, postal services, electronic and telephone communications or financial services. However, it also affects companies made up of more than 250 workers, with a turnover of more than 50 million euros per year or a balance sheet of more than 43 million, regardless of the sector to which they belong.
Failure to comply with the new guidelines by the companies could lead to fines ranging from 150 euros for minor infractions to 100,000 euros for serious or repeat infractions.
Do you want to know all the news of the Customer Service Law and know how they can affect your company? Continue reading We give you all the keys!
What are the most relevant aspects of the new Customer Service Law?
As consumers, we’ve all experienced a never-ending call for customer service at some point. This means having to listen to repetitive songs over and over again, being transferred from one department to another without results, or trying to report problems that don’t fit the options offered by an IVR. The recently approved Customer Service Law seeks, among other things, to avoid all these inconveniences.
These are the key aspects of the new regulations:
1. Personalized Attention
Consumers will have the right to request to be served by an operator or commercial agent in real time, and, if they express their dissatisfaction with the service received, they will also have the right to request that same communication is transferred to a supervisor, regardless of whether the interaction was initiated through answering machines or robotic systems, therefore, it is prohibited for any company to use the latter as exclusive means for customer service.
💡 Solve the most common queries with our ChatBot and free your agents to deal with the most complex procedures.
The Chatbot from Webphone, allows the conversation to be forwarded to a human agent whenever the user requires it; In addition, intelligent routing optimizes the distribution of calls, allowing the telephone conversation to be forwarded to the appropriate agent or supervisor based on the geolocation of the client, the product, the campaign of origin, or your own business rules.
2. Opening hours
The companies that provide basic services will be obliged to deal with incidents 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In addition, it is important to note that the customer service numbers in these cases will be free for users and calls cannot be redirected to numbers with an additional cost. For the rest of the companies, the obligation to deal with queries and claims will only apply during their business hours.
Likewise, the telephone channel must be accessible and must be complemented according to the person’s choice, with an alternative written instant messaging system, through mobile devices, or with a system of interpreting in sign language, through video. In this way, effective and accessible communication is guaranteed for vulnerable people or people with disabilities, providing options that fit their specific needs.
💡 Provide 24/7 service 365 days a day and offer your clients the possibility of contacting a representative of your business, whenever they need it.
Use robotic systems to quickly resolve the most common causes of contact and provide your customers with human assistance, whenever they request it; Webphone provides you with 900 lines and full Click to Call, so you don’t have to forward calls from your customers to numbers that imply cost for them.
3. Maximum term for resolution of complaints and claims
The maximum period for resolving claims, complaints and queries raised by consumers will be reduced from 30 to 15 days, however, the autonomous regions will have the option of further reducing this period, if their regulations allow it; In addition, filing a claim will prevent the suspension of the service when the cause of the claim and the suspension coincide.
On the other hand, basic service companies such as electricity, water or gas, must inform consumers once they become aware of incidents, that seriously affect the provision of contracted services or their continuity, without the need for the user to expressly request it. In addition, they must provide an estimated time for the restoration of supply within a maximum period of two hours and provide affected users with information on compensation or discounts that are applicable to the bill.
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Continuously keep your users informed with news and general information and provide deadlines for resolution of incidents, by sending notifications through Whatsapp, SMS, email or calls.
4. Maximum waiting time
The new Customer Service Law dictates that the maximum waiting time for telephone service, must not exceed three minutes; Likewise, it is prohibited to redirect calls to numbers with an additional cost from a free one.
It is important to bear in mind that when claims are made by phone, they must be recorded by the company, and the company must notify the customer how to access the recording later.
💡 Facilitate the work of your agents by providing them with the right tools to resolve each interaction successfully and in the right time
The Reports and Statistics module of Webphone, allows you to know the results of the calls in real time and record the data to obtain reports more complete and detailed; In addition, with Webphone you will be able to record all the calls and download the audio files to provide them to your customers.
5. Generation of additional income at the expense of the user
In the same way that the use of special rate numbers is prohibited, the law does not allow companies to use consumer interactions with customer service, to promote or sell products and services, unless they are linked to the problem and represent an improvement for the user in terms of price and quality of service.
💡Enhance the positive perception of your company and convey to your customers your commitment to comply with the latest regulations and provide exceptional customer service.
Give your customers the ability to call you at no cost through toll-free numbers. Webphone’s 900 lines offer you the opportunity to add value to your business, in a simple way, significantly improving the customer experience, by providing them with the help they need, free of charge.
6. Satisfaction evaluation
The legislation obliges companies to establish and document an assessment system of the quality of the service provided; These surveys cannot be carried out prior to the resolution of the incident or query presented by the consumer, in addition, the company will be subject to an annual audit by an accredited company that will be in charge of verifying the accuracy of the measurements. ensuring that the error in each of the measured parameters does not exceed 5% of the real value.
💡Discover the smartest way to send your surveys and improve the response rate to get the most out of the opinions of your customers.
Webphone provides you with a simple and fast way to distribute your surveys among large groups of participants, by sending personalized invitations via email or SMS.
CONCLUSION
After examining the most relevant aspects of the recent regulation, it is clear that great importance will be attached to buyers’ rights.
This new legislation poses a significant challenge for companies, which must be prepared to safely face all the changes and adapt to the various needs and requirements strong> of users.
Now that you know the main points of the new regulations, are you interested in knowing how to respect it without harming the performance of your business?
We can help you! Contact Us!