Unacceptable behaviour policy

The safety and wellbeing of our staff is important. We do not tolerate any inappropriate, aggressive, abusive or offensive behaviour directed at Ofgem staff.

We are committed to providing a professional and fair service to everyone. We expect our staff to:

• support everyone using our services, including those who may need a reasonable adjustment
• listen to and understand enquiries and complaints
• treat everyone with respect
• conduct themselves in line with the Civil Service Code

There may be times when you feel frustrated, upset, or distressed – which we understand. We ask that you treat our staff with the same respect and allow them to complete their work.

Behaving unreasonably can impact our ability to help you and might affect how we choose to communicate with you.

We will always do our best to support people using our services and will consider other ways to communicate for anyone with protected characteristics defined under the Equality Act 2010.

About this policy

Our unacceptable behaviour policy sets out the different types of unreasonable behaviour, how we will manage these and how we might respond if this behaviour continues.

How we define unacceptable behaviour

Unacceptable behaviour means acting in a way that is unreasonable, regardless of the level of someone’s stress, frustration, or anger. It may involve acts, words or physical gestures that could cause another person distress or discomfort.

Who the policy applies to

This policy applies to everyone who accesses our services or contacts our staff.

Examples of unacceptable behaviour

Our staff should be able to work without being worried about threats of abuse, harassment, discrimination and violence. We consider any form of abuse towards our staff, making specific demands that cannot be met reasonably and contacting us excessively to be unacceptable behaviour.

Aggressive, abusive, or offensive behaviour

Insulting or threatening our staff during a call or through emails and letters is unacceptable and may cause distress or create an uncomfortable environment for them.

We do not tolerate:

• any threats of physical violence
• bullying, harassment or intimidating behaviour
• offensive or abusive language and gestures
• shouting or swearing
• derogatory remarks related to someone’s race, sex, gender, age, religion, belief or any other protected characteristics

Unacceptable demands

There are limits to how much we can do and the level of service we can provide reasonably.

Examples of unacceptable demands include:

• denying or changing earlier statements
• making demands that cannot be met and that strain our time and resources
• requesting responses within an unrealistic timeframe
• repeatedly asking Ofgem to act beyond our responsibility or refusing to accept the limits of our authority
• making provoking or harmful statements and allegations against staff or Ofgem as a whole without supporting evidence
• insisting on speaking to senior management when they don’t receive a desired answer
• submitting unnecessary requests for information
• refusing to accept a final response to a complaint or enquiry and not following appropriate appeal or review processes where relevant

Unacceptable levels of contact

Contacting us about the same issue excessively uses valuable time and resources. It affects our ability to provide an effective service to others.

Examples of unacceptable levels of contact include:

• ongoing contact while refusing to provide necessary information for our investigations
• contacting us after a call has been ended due to unacceptable behaviour
• excessive telephone calls, emails, or detailed letters after we have already provided updates
• repeated and frequent contact while we are investigating an issue or complaint, including where we may not have yet responded to the initial contact
• rewording a complaint that has already been addressed previously

How we manage unacceptable behaviour

Our staff are trained to address unacceptable behaviour immediately and handle challenging conversations. They are also aware of the potential reasons contributing to challenging behaviour.

They have the right to end a call if they experience aggressive, abusive or offensive behaviour from a caller. All calls to us may be recorded and we will keep any evidence of unreasonable behaviour.

Action we may take include:

• provide a verbal warning at the time of the incident, allowing time to reflect on their behaviour and make necessary adjustments
• issue a written warning following the incident, making the individual aware of the impact their behaviour has had and encourage them to think about future communications
• restrict contact through certain communication methods while considering any reasonable adjustments
• limit contact with Ofgem to a specific individual who is available on an appointment basis
• block certain email addresses or telephone numbers

We will not respond to written communication in any format that contains abusive statements towards our staff or contains allegations that lack substantive evidence. We may also stop communicating about a specific issue or question if we believe it has already been addressed.

Serious incidents, such as abusive or threatening behaviour will be reported directly to the police.

How we might restrict contact

We may restrict contact if an individual’s behaviour is unacceptable or if it puts our staff at risk.

We will inform them of these restrictions, how long they will apply and how they can challenge the decision if they disagree. This will usually be in writing or another agreed format if a reasonable adjustment is in place. The individual will be told if we choose to end the restrictions.

If a restriction is put in place under this policy, we will make sure the individual can still reach out to us in a suitable way.

Some restrictions may be extended further if the behaviour continues or is extreme. In these circumstances, our staff have the right to stop contact immediately or refuse future complaints from the individual.