Council call centre assists in 1.3M enquiries in 2016
Brisbane City Council received more than 1.3 million enquiries through its 24/7 Contact Centre in 2016, with thousands of calls, SMS, website and social media enquiries relating to pets, wheelie bins, and rates.
Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said Council’s one-stop-shop Contact Centre handled a range of questions, fielding 900,000 calls and 240,000 website enquiries and 65,300 social media enquiries.
“Last year queries about illegal parking, lost pets and replacement wheelie bins were some of the most popular topics raised with Council,” Cr Quirk said.
“Requesting wheelie bin repairs or replacements topped the list of calls to Council in 2016, with just over 85,200 residents placing a call to the Contact Centre over the year.
“Council also received more than 69,100 calls to report illegally parked cars and abandoned vehicles, as well as querying parking tickets.
“Questions about animal registration, permits and microchipping were also popular call topics last year, with a total of 67,400 calls made to Council.”
Cr Quirk said the Contact Centre was the first point of contact for residents asking about Council services, reporting problems or seeking further information about their properties.
“The centre has grown from 40 people answering calls during business hours in 1996, to a 24/7 service with 180 frontline staff to help the people of Brisbane,” he said.
“Residents can contact Council through email, social media or by phone; each and every one of the 1.4 million enquiries received each year is provided with a response from our dedicated staff.”
Residents can contact Council on 3403 8888 or by SMS at 0429 2 FIX IT or through www.brisbane.qld.gov.au.
| Type of enquiry | Total |
| Wheelie bin replacements and repairs | 85,270 |
| Illegal parking, abandoned cars, tickets | 69,129 |
| Animal Permits and registration | 67,393 |
| Rates | 66,180 |
| Plumbing inspections, plans, approvals | 63,270 |
| Building approvals | 53,791 |
| Property Searches | 51,912 |
| Lost Property | 43,846 |
| General waste, green waste, recycling | 41,289 |
| DAs and compliance with DAs | 29,313 |