Centrelink Indigenous Customer Charter:
Centrelink has an Indigenous Customer Charter. You can get the charter from
any Centrelink Customer Service Centre. The charter outlines:
- what we do
- how to contact us
- the type of service you can expect
- your basic rights and responsibilities
- how to give us feedback.
This charter has been developed in consultation with customers, community groups,
staff and policy departments.
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We will help you by:
Making it easy to access our services:
- providing a range of ways you can contact us
- providing interpreter or TTY services if you need them
- providing some information in alternative formats.
Giving you personal service:
- offering you a package of services and products that can help you with what
is happening in your life
- providing or referring you to other services you may need
- having a Customer Service Officer, familiar with your situation, who
can be your on-going point of contact to help you with any business you can't
do over the phone
- listening carefully to what you say to us
- identifying ourselves when we talk with you
- being friendly, helpful, respectful and sensitive to your individual needs.
Getting it right:
- providing accurate and consistent information
- providing information that is easy to understand
- explaining the things you need to know and making it clear what you need
to do
- fixing mistakes.
Giving you prompt and efficient service:
- making a decision quickly once we have all the information we need to make
that decision
- making an appointment for you to visit us or for us to phone you at a time
that suits you.
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You can help us by:
- phoning us first if you have any questions as it may save you time
- having relevant documents, completed forms and your Customer Reference Number (if you have one) ready when you talk with us
- letting us know if you are unable to keep an appointment or reply to a request
for information on time
- treating our staff with courtesy.
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You have the right to:
- apply for payments or services
- nominate a person to act on your behalf
- receive fair and unbiased assistance
- receive an explanation of the reasons for our decisions
- receive a receipt number if you contact us by phone and we need to access your records
- ask for a review of a decision if you think it is incorrect
- see your personal information
- have your privacy respected and information about you kept confidential
- give us feedback about our service, including making a complaint.
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You need to:
- tell us as soon as you know that your circumstances are about to change
eg. your address, income or relationship arrangements
- reply to our requests on time
- meet any Mutual Obligation requirements for the services or payments you are receiving.
Note: You need to do these things or your payment may be affected.
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How to get a decision reviewed:
If you think a decision Centrelink has made is wrong, you can ask for it to be reviewed.
You can ask for the decision to be reconsidered by either:
- the person who made it, or
- an Authorised Review Officer (ARO), a senior officer.
If the decision is wrong, it can be changed.
If you still think the decision is wrong, you can appeal to the Social Security
Appeals Tribunal (SSAT). To do this you must have the decision reviewed by an
ARO. If you disagree with the decision of the SSAT, you may appeal to the Administrative
Appeals Tribunal. The ARO
will tell you how to do this.
All these review processes are free. However, it is to your advantage to appeal
quickly, as you may only get paid from the day you asked for the decision to
be reviewed.
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Your opinion is important to us:
Any of our staff can help you. However, also available if required are Indigenous
Customer Service Officers or Indigenous Services Officers.
If you are happy or unhappy with our service, there are four ways you can tell
us:
- talk to any of our staff
- complete a customer comment card
- telephone our Customer Relations Line on FREECALL™1800 050 004 or
the TTY service on 1800 000 567
- visit our web site at www.centrelink.gov.au.
If a staff member cannot sort out your concern, they will refer it to someone who can.
You may also be invited to participate in customer surveys.
For more information, visit your nearest Centrelink Customer Service Centre or you can Telephone Us.
