The Processing Centre
I visit one of our processing centres this morning, as I need to brush up on certain aspects of claim processing. (I haven't worked on processing for a long time.)
When someone makes a claim for benefit, they need to dial the contact centre on a freephone number. That is, it is free from a landline, but if you dial from a mobile, there may be a charge. This is an 'inbound call.' The operator determines which benefit you want to claim, tells you what documents you need to make the claim, and then sets a time to call you back, an 'outbound call.' When they call you back, (if they ever do), the claim is made, with the operator asking the questions on the claim form and entering your answers directly into the computer.
The full claim form or BID (benefit input document) is then sent through to the processing centre. This is supposed to occur on our computers as the result of an electronic 'push.' About half our 'pushes' fail, so the BID is sent to processing by courier. (I think the computer programming was done by EDS).
After the claim is made, an appointment is made for the customer by the contact centre at their nearest job centre, to which they are told to take their documentation to be checked by us. How long does it take to process a claim? At the moment there is an official backlog of up to six weeks, although I do know someone who's been waiting since February, (it's now December).
When I walk into the processing centre, I see piles of BIDs everywhere, piled up on the desks, on spare chairs, even on the floor. I have to remove a heap of them before I can sit down and drink my first cup of tea of the day. Then there is a little light gossip, mostly revolving around last night's TV, and finally the processors get down to the serious business of handing out Christmas cards.
How many people work in a processing centre? In this one, about half. The rest make cups of tea, chat, read newspapers and surf the Internet. The well-known gambit of walking to and fro with a clipboard is much in use here. A frazzled young man staggers in from the post room with another pile of claims, and is told to 'stick them in that cupboard there.' He protests that the cupboard is already full, and is instructed to 'just shove them in somehow, don't worry about it.'
I admire the new information technology, and wander round the centre, chatting to people I know. In one corner, a fierce argument is going on between several people as to whether full time students are able to claim Income Support. Each of the participants has a different opinion, and each is convinced that theirs is the correct one. There are more than fifty different benefits, and the benefits system is so complex that situations like this often develop. I think they should just ask the claimants, as they know all the answers. (A full time student can claim Income Support, if they are a 'prescribed category of person' such as a lone parent). I sit down to listen to the arguing, but contribute nothing, as it's best never to admit you know something. You may end up having to do it.
When someone makes a claim for benefit, they need to dial the contact centre on a freephone number. That is, it is free from a landline, but if you dial from a mobile, there may be a charge. This is an 'inbound call.' The operator determines which benefit you want to claim, tells you what documents you need to make the claim, and then sets a time to call you back, an 'outbound call.' When they call you back, (if they ever do), the claim is made, with the operator asking the questions on the claim form and entering your answers directly into the computer.
The full claim form or BID (benefit input document) is then sent through to the processing centre. This is supposed to occur on our computers as the result of an electronic 'push.' About half our 'pushes' fail, so the BID is sent to processing by courier. (I think the computer programming was done by EDS).
After the claim is made, an appointment is made for the customer by the contact centre at their nearest job centre, to which they are told to take their documentation to be checked by us. How long does it take to process a claim? At the moment there is an official backlog of up to six weeks, although I do know someone who's been waiting since February, (it's now December).
When I walk into the processing centre, I see piles of BIDs everywhere, piled up on the desks, on spare chairs, even on the floor. I have to remove a heap of them before I can sit down and drink my first cup of tea of the day. Then there is a little light gossip, mostly revolving around last night's TV, and finally the processors get down to the serious business of handing out Christmas cards.
How many people work in a processing centre? In this one, about half. The rest make cups of tea, chat, read newspapers and surf the Internet. The well-known gambit of walking to and fro with a clipboard is much in use here. A frazzled young man staggers in from the post room with another pile of claims, and is told to 'stick them in that cupboard there.' He protests that the cupboard is already full, and is instructed to 'just shove them in somehow, don't worry about it.'
I admire the new information technology, and wander round the centre, chatting to people I know. In one corner, a fierce argument is going on between several people as to whether full time students are able to claim Income Support. Each of the participants has a different opinion, and each is convinced that theirs is the correct one. There are more than fifty different benefits, and the benefits system is so complex that situations like this often develop. I think they should just ask the claimants, as they know all the answers. (A full time student can claim Income Support, if they are a 'prescribed category of person' such as a lone parent). I sit down to listen to the arguing, but contribute nothing, as it's best never to admit you know something. You may end up having to do it.
posted by annette wilson @ 9:04 AM
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