1. Introduction

Pulse8 wants to ensure that everyone has equal opportunity to access and use our services

This policy outlines our efforts to ensure that vulnerable customer have access to the same service as everyone else.

Pulse8 acknowledge that treating vulnerable customers fairly is evolving and ever changing, we will aim to keep up to date with latest technologies and advances that may change over time to support our customers to the best of our ability.

This document will be known by all staff.

2. Identifying Vulnerable Customers

Pulse8 wants to be approachable and convenient so customers can notify us of concerns that may need to be considered.

As a company who doesn’t pursue customer with email or phone marketing, we will not be approaching customers to request vulnerability status, but we will invite our customers to contact the team via email or phone.

Where appropriate that information will be stored to allow our team to provide better support for our customer individual situations.

Vulnerability can come in many forms, such as, age, a physical or learning disability, a physical or mental illness, low literacy, communications difficulties or changes in circumstances such as bereavement. Pulse8 will aim to cater, within reason, to our customer needs regardless of circumstance.

3. Communicating with vulnerable customers

All our current support paths already apply to vulnerable customers as below:

• Webpage – Our webpage is designed to be simple to view and use allowing all customer the opportunity to compare products and prices when contact via the phone may be overwhelming.
• Email – Our email support is offer in our office hours of Monday – Friday between 08:30-17:30, emails are sent in plain text format allowing to be formatted to the users needs whether that is contrast of font/background colour or the size of the text. This also allows for use of screen readers and Braille human interface devices.
• Billing information is also sent out via email, these are attached as a PDF allows for easy access and compatibility for customers needs.
• Phone support – Our email support is offer in our office hours of Monday – Friday between 08:30-17:30. All our support staff our English speaking as a first language, with a high probability that the first member of staff will be able to answer a query or begin to resolve any issues.
• Our staff do not follow support scripts and will work to resolve issues as efficiently and stress free as possible.
• If a customer requires a follow up email from a phone call then staff will be happy to do so.
• AI Chat-bot and webchat – Our online AI chat-bot will be able to quickly answer a large majority of basic questions that all our customers might have, where this is not possible a member of staff is on hand to take over the support request where necessary.
• Our AI chat-bot is available at all times and our member of staff are available for webchat in our office hours of Monday – Friday between 08:30-17:30
• Pulse8 aims to reply to requests within 1 working day, and often requests are responded to within hours or minutes.
• Billing and accounts queries are handled by our inhouse accounts team, if customers are facing vulnerabilities with financial difficulties, then our accounts team will work to find a reasonable resolution.

4. Recording information about vulnerable customers’ needs

Information will only be taken down in line with data protection legislation, and will only be done so with the aim of providing better support and services for the specific customer.

The information recorded will only be accessible for staff and will only be done with the consent of the customer.

5. Staff training and resources

Pulse8 understand that not all vulnerable customers are forthcoming with their vulnerabilities, so staff are trained to listen for verbal cues or behaviours that indicate the customer may require additional help, support or services that might benefit them.

6. Monitoring and evaluating

Pulse8 will review our process annually, we encourage all our customer to get in touch with any comments or feedback

Contacting Pulse8

Sales and support – support@pulse8.co.uk

Billing queries – accounts@pulse8.co.uk