If you believe that a member of the MRSNZ has been in breach of the Code of Practice and you wish to make a complaint to the Market Research Society of New Zealand, then please send your complaint in writing to our contact details or email your complaint to: Secretary@mrsnz.org.nz. The MRSNZ Complaint's Officer will respond to your complaint within 14 days of receipt.
Guidelines
1. If you have not already done so, read the New Zealand Market Research Society's Code of Practice and Complaints Procedure (noted below).
2. The complaint must be made against a member of the Market Research Society of New Zealand. This includes all of membership - Full, Associate, Affiliate, Market Research Company, Fellows and Honorary Life Members.
3. The complaint must be made in writing to the Complaints Officer of the Market Research Society Committee or emailed to the Executive Secretary of the Market Research Society.
4. The written complaint should identify specific infringements of the Articles described in the Code of Practice.
COMMITTEE COMPLAINTS OFFICER
The Committee shall appoint a full member of the Society to be the Complaints Officer. The Complaints Officer must have at least five years research experience and may or may not be a member of the Committee. Any complaint received by the Society relating to any member of the Society shall be referred to the Complaints Officer.
The Complaints Officer shall be responsible for:
- giving potential complainants the necessary information to make a complaint if they so wish; this information will include the Code of Practice, Complaints Procedure and guidelines outlining 'Making a Complaint';
- ensuring that the complaint is made in writing;
- receiving complaints relating to any member of the Society, from both members and non-members of the Society;
- clarifying the nature and particulars of any such complaint;
- trying to resolve the complaint by having the parties communicate with each other and, if necessary, mediating between the parties;
- carrying out any independent investigation of the substance and particulars of the complaint as seem appropriate to him or her, taking into account all of the circumstances;
- collating relevant information through liaison with the complainant and the subject of the complaint;
- preparing and presenting a report to the Committee describing the complaint;
- Within 14 days of receiving any complaint, the Complaints Officer shall give the subject of the complaint notification, in writing, of:
- the fact that a complaint has been received;
- the substance and particulars of the complaint (referring him or her to the Code of Practice and Complaints Procedure) including a copy of the complaint;
- the fact that the subject of the complaint is required to respond, in writing, to the Complaints Officer within 14 days of advice of the complaint (or an explanation of why this response cannot be made available in 14 days, and when it will be available).
- As soon as is reasonably practicable, the Complaints Officer shall submit a report to the President, in writing, regarding his or her findings as to the substance and particulars of the complaint. This must also be supplied to the subject of the complaint. Any such report shall include any response received from the subject of the complaint. However, in the absence of any response received from the subject of the complaint, no such report shall be submitted by the Complaints Officer before the 15th day after giving notification of the complaint, in writing, to the subject of the complaint.
COMPLAINTS COMMITTEE
Upon receipt of any such report by the President, from the Complaints Officer, the President shall appoint a Complaints Committee to consider the complaint. The Complaints Committee shall consist of three persons who are each members of the Committee and who have no affiliation with the person making the complaint or the person who is the subject of the complaint.
The Complaints Officer who submitted the report as to the complaint may, but need not be, appointed to that Complaints Committee but only if the Complaints Officer is a member of the Committee. Outside MRS executives or specialists may be recruited to assist the Complaints Committee in their appraisal.
Within seven days of the appointment of the Complaints Committee, its chairman must advise the complainant and the subject of the complaint that a committee has been appointed, and who the members are.
The Complaints Committee shall:
- consider the report of the Complaints Officer
- make reasonable efforts to resolve the complaint between the complainant and the subject of the complaint by consultation with these two parties.
- give the subject of the complaint opportunity to make representation.
If the Complaints Committee resolves the complaint between the complainant and the subject of the complaint then it shall report the matter and its resolution in writing, within fourteen days of resolution, to the President and the Market Research Society Committee shall not be required to take any further action in relation to the complaint.
If the Complaints Committee is unable to resolve the complaint within a reasonable time, it shall consider whether there is sufficient substance to the complaint to warrant consideration of the complaint by the Market Research Society Committee. In making any such decision the Complaints Committee shall:
- give the subject of the complaint a reasonable opportunity to be heard on the issue
- if required by the subject of the complaint, arrange a meeting to give the subject of the complaint the opportunity to be heard
The Complaints Committee shall submit to the President for the Market Research Society Committee a written report regarding its investigations, deliberations and conclusions. This must also be supplied to the subject of the complaint.
If the Complaints Committee reports that it has decided there is not sufficient substance to the complaint to warrant consideration of the complaint by the full Market Research Society Committee then the Market Research Society Committee shall not be required to take any further action in relation to the complaint.
MARKET RESEARCH SOCIETY COMMITTEE
If the Complaints Committee reports that there is sufficient substance to the complaint to warrant consideration of the complaint by the full Market Research Society Committee, then the Market Research Society President shall, within 14 days, call a meeting of the Market Research Society Committee to consider the complaint as soon as is reasonably practicable (but with at least 14 days notice).
Upon calling such a meeting, the President shall forward written notice to the subject of the complaint and the complainant, detailing:
- the fact that a meeting of the Market Research Society Committee is being convened to consider the complaint
- the place, date and time at which the meeting will be convened
- the powers of the Market Research Society Committee in dealing with any complaint
- the fact that the subject of the complaint and the complainant are entitled to attend the meeting.
The Market Research Society Committee must give both the complainant and the subject of the complaint opportunity to be heard at this meeting. The Committee is entitled to conduct the meeting in the absence of the complainant and the subject of the complaint (should he or she choose not to attend the meeting having been notified as described above). The decision of the Committee will be made available to both the subject of the complaint and the complainant.
The Market Research Society Committee is empowered to impose upon the member subject of the complaint all or any one or more of the following penalties:
1) Serve a notice on the member subject of the complaint specifying the failure with respect to the complaint and requiring that failure to be made good within the period specified in the notice;
2) Reprimand the member in writing;
3) Suspend the member from the enjoyment of any rights or privileges in connection with Membership and/or the facilities or services provided by it;
4) Expel the member from the Society;
NOTE:
a) Where the subject of a complaint is a company or partnership (e.g. Corporate Members) the senior executive of that company or partnership shall be held responsible for the actions of that company or partnership.
b) Where a complaint is laid against the Complaints Officer or a member of the Complaints Committee, the President is required to replace that member with a full member of the Society.
c) Where a complaint is laid against a member of the Market Research Society Committee, when the Market Research Society Committee is considering a complaint, the President of the Market Research Society is required to replace that member (for the purposes of considering the complaint) with any full member of the Society to the Complaints Committee.
d) Where a Complaints Officer, member of the Complaints Committee or member of the Market Research Society Committee is subject to a conflict of interests in dealing with any complaint, that person shall be replaced with a full member of the Society, as detailed in Notes b) and c) above.
e) In the event of the unavoidable absence of the Complaints Officer, after consultation with the President, any full member of the Society may be appointed if a complaint needs to be dealt with.
f) In the event of the unavoidable absence of a member of the Complaints Committee, after consultation with the President, any full member of the Society may be appointed if a complaint needs to be dealt with.
g) If need be, outsiders may be requested to provide advice to the Complaints Committee.
