The information below is of a general nature and is intended as a guide only. It is not comprehensive and should not be relied on as a substitute for independent legal advice.
Obligation To Have A Complaints Handling Process
The purpose of the Code is to prescribe:
a) A method of handling complaints made by members of the public to licensees regarding compliance with these Codes; and
b) The manner of reporting by the commercial radio industry to ACMA on complaints so made. As a starting point, every station must appoint a responsible person to receive and record complaints received during normal office hours. Such complaints must be eventually brought to the attention of station management.
Valid Code Complaints
A code complaint must:
- contain the complaints name and address;
- contain sufficent detail about the material broadcast;
- sufficient details of the complaint for the nature of the complaint to be understood;
- be about a matter covered by the Code;
- be about a matter the complainant has heard broadcast; and
- be recieved within 30 days of the relevant broadcast.
Obligation To Attempt To Resolve Valid Compliants
Code 10 requires your station to respond in writing within 30 days after receiving the complaint. If your station needs more time to investigate the complaint or obtain professional advice and cannot respond in full within 30 days, you must nevertheless acknowledge receipt of the complaint within 30 days and provide a final response within 45 days.
In responding to a valid complaint, your station must inform the complainant that if he or she is not satisfied with the station’s response, he or she has the right to refer the complaint to the Australian Communications and Media Authority *(ACMA). Each station is required to keep a record of all written complaints for a period of one year.
Your station is not required to resolve a complaint that it reasonably considers to be frivolous or vexatious or an abuse of the complaints process or outside the operation of the Code. The same applies for complaints that are made anonymously or more than 30 days after the date of the relevant broadcast (stale complaints).
Reporting Requirements
All stations must complete and submit a standard Complaints Return Form to Commercial Radio & Audio every three months.
On this form, your station is required to provide two figures:
- The total of all “Complaints” received; and
- The total of all “Complaints and Comments” received. Comments are listener complaints that do not allege a breach of the Codes. You must also provide a distribution of “complaints” by reference to type of program and explanatory notes to identify any trends that appear in the table.
Submitting Your Complaints Return
You can send us your station’s completed Complaints Return by one of the following methods:
Email: compreturns@commercialradio.com.au;
Fax: (02) 9281 6599; or
Post: Level 5, 8 Foveaux Street, Surry Hills, NSW, 2010.
For more information, please contact Sarah Kruger (Head of Legal & Regulatory Affairs) at sarah.kruger@commercialradio.com.au or 02 9281 6577.