Cookie consent

We use cookies to track how you use our website to help improve your experience and show you personalised content. You can accept the use of all cookies or manage them individually. You can find out more about your options by clicking “manage cookies".

Strictly necessary/functionality cookies

Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.

Find out more about our cookies

United Utilities’ service recovery team wins awards hat-trick

14 Mar 2019

United Utilities’ service recovery team won the treble at The UK Complaint Handling Awards 2019 in March.

The team, based in Warrington, picked up the prizes for most improved complaint handling, most proactive complaints team and Sally Ainsworth won complaint handling leader of the year.

The awards, held at the Park Plaza Victoria Hotel in London on Friday 8 March, recognise the inspiring organisations who are dedicated to effective complaint handling.

Sally Ainsworth, head of service recovery, said: “This fantastic news is a result of us picking up the phone, listening, building rapport and then resolving customers’ complaints. I’m really proud of the whole team.”

The judges said: “Service recovery is a team that has changed the way it operates leading to a significant reduction in complaints – being proactive, responding quickly and learning from the insight are key elements of the changes.”

The team’s highlights include:

  • Significantly improving resolution times from eight days to three
  • An 80 per cent reduction in complaints since 2010 and a 22 per cent reduction in the last two years
  • A reduction in repeat complaints of 64 per cent over the last two years - the second lowest in the industry

For more information please contact the United Utilities’ press office on 0345 072 0822.

United Utilities

United Utilities is the UK’s largest listed water company and manages the regulated water and wastewater network in North West England – which includes Cumbria, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside with a combined population of nearly seven million.

United Utilities’ headquarters are in Warrington. Its shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and the FTSE 100 Index. In 2018 the company was awarded World Class Status in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the eleventh year in succession. In 2018 the company was also accredited with the Service Mark by the Institute of Customer Service.

UK Complaint Handling Awards

The UK Complaint Handling Awards were recently accredited with the Gold standard in the Awards Trust Mark scheme from The Independent Awards Standards Council. The awards recognise the inspiring organisations who are dedicated to effective complaint handling.