Large numbers of Australians are experiencing poor customer service and many of us feel the standard of support provided by businesses is getting worse, new CHOICE research reveals.

In a survey of over 6000 CHOICE supporters in May this year, 73% told us they had encountered sub-par service from a business in the preceding year, and 85% believed this assistance was getting worse.

While virtually all respondents told us they think companies should have to provide adequate and accessible customer service, there's no law in Australia requiring this

Consumers told us they were commonly having to spend long periods on hold, were being passed between company representatives who couldn't help, or even finding it hard to find a way to contact a business in the first place.

While virtually all respondents told us they think companies should have to provide adequate and accessible customer service, there's no law in Australia requiring this.

Emboldened by this chorus, CHOICE is pushing for a change in the law that could set standards for the help businesses are required to deliver to consumers.

Australians say they're spending too long on hold or can't reach businesses, among other issues.

What's wrong with customer service?

Customers left waiting

Just over 48% of supporters told us they felt they had been kept waiting too long when trying to seek help by phone.

Karen Trudgian says she spent a "surreal" amount of time on hold to AAMI over multiple occasions when she tried to process a car insurance claim. 

Her wait times were so long she often had to hang up and try again another day.

"It took me three weeks to get through to them, so it was orders of magnitude slower than it has been in the past," she recalls. "I was waiting beyond what I consider to be a reasonable amount of time."

Karen says the experience means she may just decide to pay out of her own pocket next time her car needs a minor repair.

"I think I'd fix it. I'm not entirely sure I would use my insurance. It was just such a deterrent," she says.

AAMI didn't respond to a request for comment.

Problem unresolved

Even when they do get through to a business, many customers aren't getting their issues resolved.

Almost 43% of respondents said the assistance they received hadn't solved the issue they'd had with a good or service.

For example, one respondent spoke of being turned away from a telco's storefront and told to seek support via phone or online.

Another recounted having to sacrifice time on holiday overseas to follow up with an Australian bank that hadn't resolved critical issues, including blocked access to savings.

Customers needing support report being turned away from company bricks-and-mortar outlets.

Customers given 'the run-around'

Australia's consumer regulator, the ACCC, has adopted a dim view of companies being evasive, calling out businesses who've given consumers 'the run-around'. 

Despite the naming and shaming of some big brands, a fair few are still stringing customers along.

Nearly 40% of supporters recalled times they had been passed between different people in the course of trying to get an issue resolved.

This often meant they had to spend more time on hold, or were forced to repeatedly explain their problem to multiple staff members.

Consumers who had tried to resolve a technical issue with their telco in particular recalled being passed from one person to another, without their problem being fixed.

Contact details hard to find

Over 31% of respondents told us it hadn't been easy for them to find a way to contact a business when they needed help.

Some of the brands they mentioned also featured in our recent probe of the hardest-to-reach businesses.

One 'return champion' is ridesharing giant Uber, which left John (surname withheld) holding the full bill for a trip his driver had cancelled midway through the journey.

This happened two years ago, while he was trying to return home after receiving medical treatment.

He went looking for a way to contact Uber, but found himself lost in a sea of unhelpful information

"I was really weak and tired, both physically and mentally, because I'd been in hospital for 10 days," he recalls.

Seeking a refund, he went looking for a way to contact Uber, but found himself lost in a sea of unhelpful information.

"You find out everything from who started the company, to who owned the company, their performance and where they are in the world," he says. "And 2000 words later, you're still no wiser as to how to get help."

John did eventually get a refund, but CHOICE has noted that it's difficult to send Uber an open-ended query, with this option hidden away in a list of FAQs on its website.

Uber has previously told us that it's "committed to providing best in class customer service" and that there's a wide range of ways customers can contact it.

Why is customer service so poor and what can be done about it?

CHOICE deputy director of campaigns and communications Andrew Kelly says Australians have delivered a clear verdict on the quality of support they're getting from the businesses they spend money with.

"We've heard thousands of stories about bad customer service, so the feeling that [it's] getting worse is palpable," he says.

Business practices that are unfair to consumers aren't illegal in Australia.

Kelly says there are a variety of reasons for the support shortfall, but the absence of any regulations compelling companies to do better is a key factor.

"There are no overarching customer service standards in Australia, so when it comes to the law, there's little to force businesses to provide good customer service," he says.

"While there are some obligations in various industry codes of conduct, these only cover some sectors and vary in terms of how vague or specific those obligations are and how strongly they're enforced."

The good news? State, territory and federal governments across Australia are considering how they can change this state of affairs.

CHOICE is calling on the government to pass strong new fairness laws that would make a raft of unfair business practices illegal

Andrew Kelly, CHOICE 

The federal government has recently been consulting with the public on how it could better mitigate commercial practices that are hurting consumers.

Kelly says one way it could do this would be to follow the example of jurisdictions such as the US, EU and UK by introducing unfair trading prohibitions.

"CHOICE is calling on the government to pass strong new fairness laws that would make a raft of unfair business practices illegal," he says.

"This could include tactics like deliberately creating barriers for consumers looking for help after purchasing a product or service, making contact details hard to find, or failing to provide an appropriate means to reach a company in the first place."

Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.

Join the conversation

To share your thoughts or ask a question, visit the CHOICE Community forum.

Visit CHOICE Community