I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that the recording of incoming calls to high volume Revenue call centres (i.e. LoCall 1890 numbers and helpdesks) for security and quality assurance purposes has been a standard feature of Revenue's public telephone service since 2006. Where calls are being recorded the callers are made aware of this fact when they contact Revenue. The recording of outbound calls had to be added for specific areas of Revenue work in 2013 related to certain business financial transactions because of Irish Payment Services requirements. Another requirement for outbound recording is the call back facility to customers, used where telephone lines are particularly busy at peak contact times. The recording of calls shows Revenue's commitment to quality customer service, training of its staff and promoting business by telephone to eliminate unnecessary contact by post. Protocols for recording of calls on Revenue's Call Centre/Helpdesk Telephone services have been in place since the commencement of call recording within Revenue. These have been updated recently to cover the recording of certain outbound calls and the commencement of the roll-out of new technology that has the capability to record outgoing calls. Existing technology has been retained pending completion of the rollout.
The protocols cover the appropriate access and use of call recording. Access is restricted to relevant managers, such as District management, Training Officers and Service Managers. Access is strictly controlled with full audit trails and Revenue Management oversight. All requests to include or remove a particular telephone from call recording arrangements must be approved at Principal Officer level in the relevant Regional/Divisional Office. The protocols also provide for regular checks on all aspects of the call recording facilities to ensure that all Data Protection requirements are being adhered to. This includes the period for which data is retained.
Call recording only applies to certain areas in Revenue such as high volume call centres. The protocols require local management to advise all relevant staff if their telephone is included in the call centre/helpdesk service being recorded and to ensure awareness of call recording protocols. Revenue telephone services that operate call recording have a pre-recorded message for inbound calls putting customers on notice that their call may be recorded. For outbound calls the staff member is required to make the recipient of the call aware that call recording is taking place. I am satisfied that Revenue has appropriate protocols in place for the recording of calls and that such recording is in keeping with good practice and shows their commitment to quality customer service.
