Banking proposal to extend the deadline for processing customer complaints
In this regard, a banking proposal emerged to amend the deadline provisions in the Complaints Management System (CRS) by adopting a calculation mechanism that starts from the next working day following the registration date. This would ensure that the day the complaint is entered is not counted within the five working-day period, aligning with the mechanism used by the Central Bank of Kuwait for calculating appeal periods.
But what changed in the banking sector, prompting banks to propose extending their deadline by one additional working day?
Initially, it should be noted that the Central Bank directed Kuwaiti banks at the beginning of last May to reduce the deadline for responding to customer complaints from 15 days to just five working days, while also mandating them to develop periodic performance indicators to measure customer satisfaction and improve the quality of complaint handling.
However, it became evident after four months of practical application, during the first update to the Complaints Management System, that the official complaint date was originally calculated starting from the next working day following its registration. Yet, according to a subsequent system update, the calculation of the complaint date began from the same day it was entered into the system.
Consequently, the banking view is that the currently applied calculation mechanism may negatively affect the quality and efficiency of complaint analysis, particularly in complex cases that require sufficient time for analysis and the preparation of comprehensive and accurate responses. This proposal was driven by a study of the mechanism for calculating the time period for processing official complaints.
In addition to this consideration, there is a second practical reason from the banks’ perspective, emphasizing the importance of adopting a deadline starting from the next working day. Some official complaints are received late in the working day, sometimes as little as two hours or less before the end of official working hours. This does not allow the relevant departments in banks sufficient time to initiate investigation and research procedures on the same day. If the day of a late complaint is counted within the five-day deadline, the actual processing period becomes only four working days, effectively resulting in the loss of a full day of the deadline.
From this perspective, the banks proposed that the Central Bank consider adopting a mechanism for calculating the deadline starting from the next working day following the complaint’s registration date, and applying it in the CRS system as was done in the first update. This would ensure that the day the complaint is entered is not counted within the five working-day period, ensuring compliance with the mechanism used by the regulatory authority for calculating appeal periods and achieving consistency in application.
According to the Central Bank’s existing guidelines, individual customers can use the electronic form to submit a complaint if the bank fails to provide them with a complaint form, or if the bank does not respond in writing to the complaints they submitted within the specified period.
1. Complaints received before the end of working hours reduce the deadline.
2. Starting complaint processing from the day of registration pressures the quality of responses.
