Complaints, compliments and general feedback

Some things to consider: 

• If your complaint is related to your experience with the service (call, text, online chat or video call), please provide us with the exact date and time of your interaction/s. This will help us investigate your complaint. 

• Please note that we welcome all feedback and you do not have to provide any information that may identify you. However, this may limit our ability to investigate a complaint or provide you with feedback.  

Thank you for providing us feedback. We take complaints very seriously and any feedback you provide is used to improve the service. 

If you would like to submit a complaint about your contact with 1800RESPECT, please complete this form: Complaints.  

If you would like to submit a compliment about your contact with 1800RESPECT, please complete this form: Compliments.  

If you would like to submit general feedback about your contact with 1800RESPECT, please complete this form: General Feedback.  

When we receive a complaint, we will conduct a thorough investigation.  

What to expect: 

• When you submit your complaint, our team will contact you within two business days acknowledging your complaint if you have agreed to being contacted. 
• We aim to resolve complaints within 28 days. If the issue is complex and requires more time, we will advise you if this is the case. 
• Our team will investigate all feedback. If you have provided us with your contact details and consent to be contacted, we will provide you with the outcome of our investigation. 

If you are not satisfied or have concerns with the service you received from 1800RESPECT during a call, online chat or text, you can provide feedback using the form above. We take complaints very seriously and recognise that any feedback contributes to the ongoing improvement of our service. When we receive your complaint, we will conduct a thorough investigation. If the issue is complex, we may require a longer time period and will advise you if this is the case. 

1800RESPECT investigates complaints in a way that seeks to understand what happened when you contacted the service. This process includes: 

• reviewing available 1800RESPECT documentation and recordings including call, online chat and/or text recordings  
• speaking with you and our counsellors, and  
• assessing how closely the service we provided you aligns with our quality of service standards. 

Can I still make a complaint if I didn’t use my real name or provide many personal details? 

• If you used a fake name or didn’t provide many personal details when contacting the service, we will still make every attempt to locate the records of your contact with what information you can provide us.  
• Information that can help us locate your interaction can include the date and time of your interaction with the service, or the counsellor that you spoke to during your conversation.  

Please note that there may be limitations in how much feedback we can provide you if we are unable to find any recordings or documentation from your contact with the service.  

We will still use any feedback that you provide in your complaint to improve the service.  

Can I still make a complaint if I asked for my call not to be recorded? 

• Yes, you can still lodge a complaint even if you chose not to have your call recorded. However, not having your call recorded limits how much feedback we can provide to support improving the service.   
• We will still make every attempt to confirm the details of your contact with the service with what information you can provide us. 
• Information that can help us locate your interaction can include the date and time of your interaction with the service, or the counsellor that you spoke to during your conversation.  
• Any feedback that you provide in your complaint will still be used to improve the service. 

For more information, please view our Privacy Statement. 

1800RESPECT keeps copies of complaints communication and discussions as required by legislation. 

If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint, you can lodge a complaint with the Australian Government’s Department of Social Services (DSS), which funds 1800RESPECT. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from DSS, you can lodge a complaint through the Commonwealth Ombudsman. 

If you or someone you know is experiencing violence or abuse, you can call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, text 0458 737 732 or visit our website for online chat and video call services: 

• Available 24/7: Call, text or online chat.   

• Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm AEST (except national public holidays): Video call (no appointment needed)