Complaints and Internal Dispute
An operator must ensure that the Retirement Village promotes a culture that values and encourages residents to raise concerns and supports the effective resolution of any complaint.
An operator must not discourage a resident or a person acting on behalf of a resident (including members of the Residents Committee of the retirement village) from making a complaint or pursuing an internal dispute.
An operator must not prevent a resident from seeking assistance, support or representation from the Residents Committee of the retirement village to make a complaint or pursue an internal dispute, or resolve a complaint or internal dispute.
This procedure covers:
- A process for the resolution of complaints made by residents, including complaints made by persons acting on behalf of residents,
- A process for the resolution of internal disputes between a resident and the operator, or between 2 or more residents.
The following is not allowed under the Retirement Villages Amendment (Rules of Conduct for Operators) Regulation 2019 and is not condoned by Oceangrove Management:
- imposing any fee or charge for making a complaint or pursuing an internal dispute,
- providing a reward, rebate, incentive or other benefit if the resident does not make a complaint or pursue an internal dispute,
- not accepting a complaint or internal dispute from a person acting on behalf of a resident,
- employing high pressure tactics, harassing the resident or undertaking any other form of harsh or unconscionable conduct,
- engaging in conduct that prejudices, harasses or intimidates the resident or exercising retribution against the resident as a result of the complaint being made or the internal dispute being pursued.
- Operators must not prevent residents from consulting the Residents Committee
To deal with any internal complaints or disputes, the Village has the following process.
Raising a dispute
Residents are encouraged to contact the Resident Committee. If this is not successful or a resident prefers to raise the issue with Management, the Resident should raise the dispute with the Village Manager.
From the date of the complaint it should not take longer than 5 working days for the complaint or internal dispute to be acknowledged and no longer that 60 working days for the management of the complaint or internal dispute to be resolved.
Resolution of the dispute will depend upon the nature of the individual dispute.
If there is still no resolution the dispute can be escalated to the Village Operators, Sarah Sutherland and Grant Easterby.
Please see hierarchy below
Should the Village’s internal process fail the residents can seek advice through NSW Fair Trading or the Consumer and Commercial Division of NCAT.
All measures are taken to ensure the privacy of residents involved.
Maintaining records of complaints and internal dispute
An operator must keep a record of the following for at least 5 years
- Details of each complaint or internal dispute, including the name and contact details of each resident concerned, and the date the complaint and internal dispute was raised
- Details of actions taken in response to each complaint or internal dispute, including the names and contact details of any staff involved in the handling of the complaint or internal dispute and the date the action was taken
- If the complaint or internal dispute was resolved, withdrawn, referred or escalated or another outcome was achieved
- The number of complaint or internal disputes handled each calendar year
Copies of this policy are available from the concierge.