Lodge a complaint
Fire Protection Association Australia (FPA Australia) Corporate
members are made up of manufacturers and suppliers of fire
protection products and services. These include fire systems
designers & certifiers, educators, bushfire consultants and
other individuals and companies working as part of the fire
protection community to provide a safer environment for all
Australians.
All FPA Australia member companies sign up to and agree to abide
by the Code of Practice. All individuals accredited
under an FPA Australia accreditation scheme (FPAS or
BPAD) are bound by the Code of
Professional Conduct.The Code of Practice and/or the Code of
Professional Conduct (the Code) prescribes the principles,
standards of behaviour and service delivery requirements and
applies to all FPA Australia Signatories to the Code. Compliance
with the Code establishes the benchmark for the delivery of
products and services to the community. Signatories shall strive
for best practice in relation to quality and compliance of work.
Work undertaken by signatories should as a minimum, comply with or
seek to exceed, all relevant legislation, codes and standards.
Complaints
Any person may make a complaint. FPA Australia will endeavour to
process all complaints as quickly as possible, however we are
unable to give timeframes to complainants as this will depend on
the information that may need to be gathered. We endeavour to
process complaints within 15 business days.
There will be certain matters and requested action that FPA
Australia will not be able to action for various reasons eg.
compensation, contractual disputes, rectification of defective
work, hearsay.
Reporting and investigating potential Code breaches
Suspected breaches of the Code must be reported in writing to
the FPA Australia via post or online. Such written complaints must
include the name and contact details of the complainant and
include:
- a brief outline of the complaint with supporting evidence,
and
- copies of all documentation/correspondence exchanged between
the complainant and the company in question regarding the complaint
being reported to FPA Australia
FPA Australia will:
- receive allegations about breaches of the Code
- investigate all alleged breaches for validity
- determine whether a breach has occurred, and if appropriate,
refer the matter to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FPA
Australia for further determination and possible investigation
If FPA Australia determines a major breach has occurred, the CEO
may immediately suspend the Signatory's membership pending the
outcome of a further investigation.
Raising your concerns with the relevant parties
In the first instance, FPA Australia advises that you make
contact with the fire protection company or contractor you are
seeking to put forward your complaint about in order to discuss
your concerns and seek resolution wherever possible. This may
assist with resolving an issue.
Outcomes when a breach is identified
If the outcome of an investigation determines a breach of the
Code, the CEO may decide on, but is not limited to, one or a
combination of the following options:
- seek a formal apology from the Signatory for the breach as well
as a written undertaking from the Signatory that the breach will
not be repeated
- require the Signatory to take specified remedial action to
correct the breach and avoid re-occurrence
- send a formal warning to the Signatory
- refer the matter to the appropriate Regulatory Authority
- suspend the membership of the Signatory
- in the event of a Signatory's suspension of membership, the
matter will be referred to the Board of Directors for further
determination. This may result in continued suspension whilst
remedial action is taken, for example, professional development,
training, qualification and/or licence attainment
- inform the Signatory to take immediate steps to cease using any
FPA Australia trademark logo and not imply in any way that it is a
member of or affiliated with the Association. The Board has sole
discretion to terminate a Signatory's membership.
Note: All investigation of potential breaches
will be undertaken in strict confidence by FPA Australia.