FOI reference - FOI-314
Date - 17 September 2024
Request
As Teachers’ Pensions do not answer the phone within an appropriate time frame, take over a week to answers online queries and do not answer the WhatsApp messages (ie all the contact methods listed on their site), I should like, under the Freedom of Information act, request the following information:
- How many staff to they employ to respond to members’ requests at any one time (ie how many staff on each shift) per shift.
- How many phone calls they receive that get connected and are put in a queue per month.
- How many of those phone calls get answered by a member of TP staff per month.
- The average time between a member being connected to the TP phone line and being answered by a member of TP staff.
Response
Following a search of our paper and electronic records, I have established that we do not hold the information you have requested.
Duty to provide advice and assistance
Under Section 16 of the FoIA, which imposes a duty to provide advice and assistance, we advise that for information on staff numbers and contact centre statistics, you should contact your pension scheme or its administrator directly, as they hold this data. If you are struggling to get a response, you may wish to raise a formal complaint using the pension scheme’s Internal Dispute Resolution Procedure (IDRP), which is designed to address member concerns. You can raise a compliant at the following link:
https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/public/contact-us/member-complaints-and-appeals.aspx
If the issue remains unresolved, we recommend contacting The Pensions Ombudsman (TPO), who can assist with disputes or delays in communication with pension providers. TPO can be contacted at the following link:
https://www.pensions-ombudsman.org.uk/check-we-can-help-your-complaint