Customer Charter

The Registry of Friendly Societies is committed to delivering the highest quality service to its customers and to ensuring continuous improvement in the standard of service that it provides.

When you submit an application to register documents under the different Acts administered by the Registry of Friendly Societies we aim to register these in the specified timeframe. If the documents are incorrect we will write to you and try to resolve any problems

We will:

• Register new Industrial and Provident Societies within 10 working days
• Register new Trade Unions within 10 working days
• Process and register all rule amendments applications within 10 working days
• Process and register amalgamation applications within 10 working days
• Process and register all change of address applications within 5 working days
• Make scanned images of documents available within 10 working days of registration onto the Registrar
• Supply images and print-outs requested by post within 3 working days
• You can call us at 01 8045499

Our dedicated Registry of Friendly Societies office provides a front line service to customers who contact the office by telephone, post and e-mail. We will continue to ensure that the Unit is manned by trained and qualified staff.

We will deal with your query as quickly as possible and in all our dealings with you we will be helpful, polite and courteous.

Contacting the RFS by Telephone
When contacting our office by telephone we aim to:

• Answer 95% of calls within 20 seconds
• Identify ourselves on answering
• Deal with your query or arrange to call you when the information is available
• Respond promptly when voice mails are received

 
Contacting the RFS by email
When contacting our office by email we aim to:

• Acknowledge all e-mails upon receipt
• Provide a full reply within 5 working days in 90% of cases. If this is not possible an interim reply will issue informing you when you can expect a full reply
• Write in clear language
  Provide contact name, telephone number and address on all correspondence.

 
Contacting the RFS by letter
When contacting our office through sending us a letter we aim to:

• Provide a full reply within 10 working days in 90% of cases. If this is not possible an interim reply will issue informing you when you can expect a full reply
• Write in clear language
• Provide contact name, telephone number and address on all correspondence.

We will maintain a transparent and easy to use system of dealing with formal complaints about the quality of service provided. When a complaint is received it will be recorded, an acknowledgement will be issued within 2 working days, and a full reply will be issued within 10 working days.

Where possible, we will attempt to resolve the difficulties at the first line of contact. Where a complaint cannot be resolved at this level you will be able to pursue the complaint to a higher level or, alternatively, to the Department’s Customer Services Officer.

Office of the Ombudsman
If you are unhappy with our response to a complaint/appeal then you can refer your complaint to the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Ombudsman is fair, independent, and free to use.

The best way to contact the Ombudsman is:

• by clicking on the ‘Make A Complaint’ link at www.ombudsman.ie
• by writing to:
  Office of the Ombudsman, 6 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, D02 W773
• or by calling the Ombudsman on 01 639 5600 if you have any queries or if you need help making your complaint.

The Registry of Friendly Societies complies fully with the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2014 (as amended). We will make every effort to provide you with as much information as possible informally, without resort to the terms of the Act.

However, should you wish to make a formal request under the Act, please visit the Freedom of Information page for details of how to contact us.

When you submit an application under the Freedom of Information Act, 2014 we aim to acknowledge your application as soon as possible and respond to your request within 20 working days of receipt, or to contact you where this is not possible.

We will aim to do our best to facilitate our customers who wish to conduct their business in Irish in accordance with our obligations under the Official Languages Act 2003.

If you write to us in Irish, we will reply to you in Irish.

We will publish important documents such as our Annual Report simultaneously in Irish and English.

An Access Officer is a specially assigned staff member who is responsible for co-ordinating assistance and guidance for persons with disabilities, to access to the widest possible extent, the full range of services that we provide.

In addition, our Access Officer will also act as a point of contact for people with disabilities seeking advice on a range of issues, including how best to access our building, as well as the range of publications in alternate formats that we can make available.

Our Access Officer, in accordance with Section 26(2) of the Disability Act 2005, is:

Heather Murray
Companies Registration Office,
Bloom House,
Gloucester Place Lower,
Dublin 1

 
Telephone: (01) 804 5311.
Email: heather.murray@cro.ie

Help us to help you by:

• Completing all application forms carefully
• Providing full and accurate information when you contact us
• Letting us know in advance if you are unable to keep an appointment
• Making comments or suggestions about the services you receive
• Treating our staff with courtesy and respect.

Registrar

Ms. Maureen O’Sullivan
Registry of Friendly Societies,
Bloom House,
Gloucester Place Lower,
Dublin 1

Telephone: (01) 804 5499

Customer Service Officer

Quality Customer Service Officer,
Customer Service Unit,
Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment,
23 Kildare Street,
Dublin 2.

 
Telephone: (01) 631 2100
Email: customerservice@enterprise.gov.ie