At Yomdel we are really proud of the client relationships we have. It is a true collaboration, and when we sit down and work closely together (as in the case of The Property Ombudsman below) the results can be genuinely outstanding. The following article is important for a number of reasons. Interestingly, very few if any other Ombudsmen services or consumer redress schemes in the UK, offer people the ability to engage 24/7 via managed live chat online. This really should be a critical component of any scheme, after all the goal is to offer people information, help and support, and to be most effective these services need to be readily available all of the time. In the case below, a big finding is that many people are simply unaware of their rights, or processes, and enabling them to quickly find answers to common queries and point them back to be able to resolve their issues without needing to get to the point of last recourse and seek redress through an official scheme.
The video below is of Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman (TPO), delivering a keynote speech to the National Association of Estate Agents on how Yomdel has massively helped increase the numbers of people TPO is able to assist, which is a very important factor as a government consultation is likely to recommend the consolidation of all redress schemes in the property sector under one Ombudsman.
Katrine Sporle, The Property Ombudsman on how Yomdel helped increase contact from Yomdel on Vimeo.
NEWS RELEASE: PARTNERSHIP WITH YOMDEL ENABLES THE PROPERTY OMBUDSMAN TO ASSIST RECORD NUMBERS OF PEOPLE
The Property Ombudsman (TPO), one of three official redress schemes in the sector, handled a record 68% more enquires in 2017 compared to the previous year, and used new digital channels to tap into significant volumes of additional people needing help with property-related issues.
In a keynote speech to the National Association of Estate Agents, the Ombudsman, Katrine Sporle, said that through a close partnership with Yomdel, the UK’s leading provider of managed live chat, she had been able to extend her team’s opening hours to 24/7 and offer critical support to people needing help with their tenancies, property transactions or other problems with estate and letting agents.
“We hit a staggering 68% increase in the number of enquiries [in 2017]. We had found a whole new source of people who wanted to make inquiries in the middle of the night, students for one” Sporle said. “All of a sudden we were actually giving advice and guidance to a whole new range of people which was actually helping the industry, not hindering.”
But the critical impact was that the massive increase in enquiries did not lead to a huge increase in formal complaints, with complaint volumes increasing just 3% in the year.
Yomdel Founder Andy Soloman said that because his company and TPO closely collaborated, the team of Yomdel live chat operators were able to work to very high standards as a genuine extension of the in-house TPO customer care team.
“The results were simply incredible, we have been able to professionally represent TPO and effectively offer guidance and advice to people who are often experiencing tricky personal situations with a landlord or estate agent,” he said.
“Through our ground-breaking work together, TPO is perfectly positioned to secure an increased mandate from the government to be the sole property-related ombudsman redress scheme. Unlike Ombudsman services in any other sector, TPO is unique in that it is genuinely open and available to consumers 24 hours every single day,” Soloman said. “And that should be a non-negotiable requirement of all redress and consumer support services.”
A current government consultation that is likely to recommend the streamlining of the three redress schemes and the appointment of just one official ombudsman service for all property-related issues.
“We are clear that a single ombudsman is the right answer,” Sporle said, before adding that the TPO was investing in a modernising programme which is going to be much more accessible to consumers as TPO surveys show that only 10% of people know how they can complain about an estate agent.
Read more about Yomdel and The Property Ombudsman in this case study
