Managing clients’ expectations
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Being informed that you owe money to the government can be a distressing and confusing experience, impacting your wellbeing. This stress is often heightened if the debt is unexpected, old, or if there is insufficient information about the debt, who to contact, or how to challenge it.
Agencies are required to act within the law and are also expected to assist people and act in the best interests of the Australian community. While legal obligations may dictate certain actions, agencies must also consider how to minimize distress for those affected.
Over the years we have collaborated to create a guide outlining best practices for notifying people about debts.
Our five principles
- WHY: Be transparent and accountable – build and maintain public trust and confidence in the agency and its purpose
- WHAT: Tell people what the debt is and where it comes from – think about the person you are communicating with
- HOW: Provide clear information for requesting review, debt waivers and repayment arrangements – tell people about their rights to seek review, payment arrangements and waiver and make sure they have access to sufficient information to fully participate in the process
- HELP: Provide contacts for people to find out more information – there will always be circumstances where people have additional questions, require more information or just need to speak to a person about their situation
- LEARN: Learn and improve – undertaking a process such as recovery of government debts, especially old debts is a valuable opportunity to identify lessons learnt and implement changes to improve future practices.
You can download the full guide here