A new service for Oxford City Council tenants will make managing appointments for repairs as simple and intuitive as online shopping.
The council is rolling out a new text service allowing tenants to track their ODS repairs and provide immediate feedback on work done to their homes.
From Tuesday 4 July, when tenants call the council to request a new repair they will get a text confirming the booking, with an expected timeframe for the work.
For gas servicing, they will get a reminder text seven days before the appointment and the day before. For other repairs, they will get a reminder text the day before.
On the day, they will get an “on my way” text with the option of tracking ODS’ journey to their home on a live map.
During the work, ODS will book any follow-up appointments with tenants in real time.
When the repair is complete, ODS will close the job and the tenant will get a link to a survey where they can offer feedback and rate their experience.
If a tenant reports unsatisfactory work ODS will contact them immediately to discuss what follow-up action is needed.
Tenants with landlines only will get automated voice messages confirming the booking, any reminders and that ODS are on the way.
Benefits
The day-to-day repair service is always the main reason social housing tenants are not satisfied with their landlord. The new service will deliver clear benefits for tenants, ODS and the council, providing better customer care and improved communication with tenants.
Around 20% of repair appointments are now missed because tenants are out when ODS arrive. This is costly for the council and ODS and inconvenient for tenants. Text reminders mean they will not miss calls about repairs or ODS turning up to do a job while they are out or not ready.
Tenants will only need to call the council again if they want to rearrange an appointment. This will, in turn, free up customer service officers to deal with other calls.
The post-work survey will also improve the repair service for tenants if they are unhappy. ODS will take immediate action to put things right rather than tenants having to make a complaint. Complaint handling can be difficult to get right and is frequently a reason why social housing tenants say they are not satisfied with their landlord.
Comment
“The new service will help ODS deliver a high-quality, modern repair service. Most people are used to online shopping and from now on they will be able to manage their repairs like a routine online shopping order. And if they’re not happy with a repair ODS will call them to arrange to put things right immediately. It means we’ll be able to deliver a responsive service with clear benefits for tenants, the council and ODS alike.”
Councillor Nigel Chapman, Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services and Council Companies
“We continually strive to improve and enhance the services we provide to tenants. However, we know that people lead busy lives and appointments can be forgotten, which is why we believe this tech-based approach will help ensure tenants get their planned repairs as quickly as possible.”
Simon Howick, Managing Director at ODS
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