Sample Customer Care Policy

Purpose and Scope

This Customer Care Policy sets clear, measurable standards for how ExampleCo, Inc. provides assistance before, during, and after purchase. It applies to all customer interactions across email, phone, chat, and the support portal, including billing inquiries, technical troubleshooting, onboarding, and accessibility requests. The policy is designed to be auditable, with specific service levels, escalation timelines, and remedies that customers can rely on.

The policy covers customers in North America, the EU/UK, and APAC, and is available in English, Spanish, French, and German. It applies to all ExampleCo subscriptions (Basic, Standard, Premium) and to hardware shipped by ExampleCo. As of FY2024, we maintained a 97.9% CSAT (customer satisfaction) average and a median first-response time of 23 minutes on priority incidents, which this policy is intended to maintain or improve.

Contact Channels & Availability

Customers can reach us via multiple channels with defined availability. Core hours are Monday–Friday, 07:00–19:00 Pacific Time (PT), excluding published holidays. Priority 1 incidents receive 24×7 coverage. All channels listed below are monitored and logged in our ticketing system for traceability and quality review.

When contacting us, please provide your account ID, the impacted product/version, steps to reproduce (if applicable), and relevant timestamps/time zone. This accelerates triage and ensures adherence to our response-time commitments. We recommend using the Support Portal for attachment-rich issues and to preserve a complete case history.

• Support Portal: https://support.exampleco.com (preferred). Available 24×7 for case creation, status checks, and secure file uploads. Average portal triage time: 15–45 minutes during core hours.
• Email: [email protected] (technical), [email protected] (billing), [email protected] (privacy). Auto-acknowledgment within 2 minutes; ticket created automatically with a case number.
• Phone (24×7 for P1; core hours otherwise): North America +1-415-555-0137, UK/EU +44 20 5550 0137, AU/NZ +61 2 5550 0137. TTY users may dial 711, then provide the NA number above.
• Live Chat: Available in the portal during core hours. Average connect time under 90 seconds; chat transcripts are attached to your case automatically.
• Postal Correspondence (non-urgent): ExampleCo, Inc., Attn: Customer Care, 450 Mission St, 12th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105, USA. Please allow 7–10 business days for processing.
• Status Page: https://status.exampleco.com for real-time service health and incident timelines. Subscribe for SMS/email alerts at no cost.

Service Levels (SLA)

We classify incoming requests by impact and urgency, then commit to specific response and resolution targets. “First response” is a human acknowledgment with a next-action plan. “Resolution” may include a confirmed fix, a documented workaround, or a roadmap commitment with timelines. Business hours are 07:00–19:00 PT, Monday–Friday, unless otherwise noted.

For subscription tiers: Basic (included) targets non-urgent support by email/portal; Standard ($29 per user/month) adds accelerated response across all channels; Premium ($99 per user/month) includes 24×7 phone for P1, expedited engineering engagement, and a named Customer Success Manager. Across all tiers, our monthly uptime target for SaaS services is 99.95%; credits are available as described below if we miss this target.

• P1 Critical (system down, data loss, security incident): First response 30 min (Premium 24×7), 1 hr (Standard within core hours), 4 hrs (Basic within core hours). Target time-to-mitigation: 4 hrs; target time-to-resolution: 24 hrs. Incident bridge is opened within 30 minutes and updated at least every 60 minutes.
• P2 High (major degradation, key feature unavailable): First response 2 hrs (Premium/Standard), 8 hrs (Basic). Target time-to-mitigation: 1 business day; target time-to-resolution: 3 business days. Updates provided every business day.
• P3 Normal (feature questions, minor defects, configuration help): First response 4 hrs (Premium/Standard), 1 business day (Basic). Target time-to-resolution: 7 business days or next scheduled release if code change required.
• P4 Low (how-to, enhancement requests): First response 1 business day for all tiers. Roadmap consideration acknowledged within 10 business days; no fixed resolution SLA.

Escalation Path & Ownership

Every case has a single accountable owner who drives it to resolution, coordinates internal resources, and provides timely updates. If a case is at risk of missing targets or requires cross-team action, the owner must initiate escalation. You may also request escalation by replying “ESCALATE” on your case or calling the support line and referencing your case number.

Escalation timeline: If a P1 is not mitigated within 4 hours, it is escalated to the Duty Manager and on-call Engineering Lead; at 8 hours, it is escalated to the Director of Engineering. For P2/P3 issues exceeding target resolution by 2 business days, the case is reviewed by a Support Team Lead; by 5 business days over target, it is escalated to the Support Manager for a recovery plan. Premium customers receive a management review within 1 business day of any missed SLA.

Data Privacy & Security in Support

We handle customer data under SOC 2 Type II controls and GDPR/CCPA-aligned processes. Support artifacts (tickets, logs, attachments) are retained for 180 days by default, then deleted, unless legal holds or your contract specify otherwise. Files uploaded to the Support Portal are encrypted in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest (AES-256). Access to cases is restricted via role-based access controls; all access is logged and reviewed weekly.

We will never ask for your password or complete payment card number. If troubleshooting requires sensitive data, we will provide a secure redaction guide and a one-time upload link with time-bound access. Identity verification may be required for account changes: we verify via domain email, SSO assertion, or a callback to a registered number. Data Processing Addendum (DPA) templates are available upon request at [email protected].

Inclusive & Accessible Support

Support is available in English, Spanish, French, and German. We use certified interpreters for additional languages on request, typically within 2 hours during core hours. For Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing customers, TTY is supported via 711 relay; we also support real-time captioning on incident bridges upon request with 60 minutes’ notice.

We design our Support Portal to meet WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines, including keyboard navigation, alt text for images, and ARIA labeling. Chat agents are trained to provide concise, plain-language instructions at a Flesch-Kincaid Grade 8–10 reading level and to offer alternative formats (PDF, text-only, or step-by-step with screenshots) as needed.

Feedback, Complaints, and Remedies

After each resolved case, we send a 2-question CSAT survey (1–5 scale plus free text). Aggregate CSAT and median time-to-resolution are published quarterly at https://support.exampleco.com/metrics. Our targets are ≥4.6/5 CSAT and ≥90% of P1 incidents mitigated within 4 hours.

To file a formal complaint, email [email protected] or mail: ExampleCo, Inc., Attn: Care Escalations, 450 Mission St, 12th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105, USA. We acknowledge complaints within 1 business day and provide a written response within 5 business days. If you believe our response is insufficient, you may request a final review by the VP of Customer Experience; decisions are issued within 10 business days.

Warranty, Refunds, and Service Credits

Subscriptions: We offer a 30-day money-back guarantee for first-time annual subscriptions purchased directly from ExampleCo. For monthly plans, cancellations take effect at the end of the current billing cycle with no retroactive refunds. Pro-rata refunds for annual plans are available if we materially breach this policy and do not cure within 30 days of notice.

Service credits for uptime: If monthly availability falls below 99.95%, you may request a credit equal to 5% of your monthly fee per additional full hour of platform downtime, capped at 25% for the month. Credit requests must be filed within 30 calendar days via the portal and require the incident ID(s). Hardware sold by ExampleCo includes a 1-year limited warranty against manufacturing defects; advance replacements ship within 2 business days (Premium) or 5 business days (Basic/Standard). Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) numbers are required; customers are responsible for return shipping unless the device is DOA (within 30 days).

Training & Quality Assurance

All agents complete 40 hours of onboarding (product labs, security, accessibility) and 8 hours quarterly recertification. Engineers participating in on-call rotations complete incident-command training annually. Policy changes are rolled into training within 30 days of publication to ensure consistent handling.

We perform quality reviews on a minimum of 5 cases per agent per week, covering accuracy, tone, policy adherence, and timeliness. Calls may be recorded for training and quality purposes and are retained for 90 days. We operate a “coaching-first” model: agents receive actionable feedback within 2 business days of a QA review, with follow-up sampling to verify improvement.

Policy Governance & Updates

This policy is versioned and reviewed at least annually or upon material changes to our services. Current version: v2.3, effective 2025-07-01. Previous versions and a redline summary are available at https://support.exampleco.com/policies. Customers with negotiated SLAs in their MSA or Order Form should defer to those terms where conflicts exist.

Questions about this policy may be directed to [email protected]. We will provide at least 30 days’ notice for material changes that adversely affect customers, via email and the Support Portal. Your continued use of our services after the effective date of changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy. This policy is governed by the laws applicable in your Master Service Agreement; absent an MSA, by the laws of California, USA.

What are the 5 C’s of customer service?

We’ll dig into some specific challenges behind providing an excellent customer experience, and some advice on how to improve those practices. I call these the 5 “Cs” – Communication, Consistency, Collaboration, Company-Wide Adoption, and Efficiency (I realize this last one is cheating).

How to create a customer service policy?

How to create successful customer services policies

1. Develop a vision.
2. Set customer service goals that feed business objectives.
3. Understand the needs of your customer.
4. Draft guidelines for employees to follow.
5. Set clear standards for reimbursements.
6. Train employees on the new policies.

What is an example of a customer care policy?

Every customer is entitled to: – a standard of service which is known and agreed; – be listened to when they comment or complain – a sensitive response to their needs; – a rapid response to their complaints; – a courteous response to their enquiries; – continuous attention by us to their satisfaction.

What is the 10 to 10 rule in customer service?

These simple actions take service to a higher level, yet, they are missing in many organizations. I’ve expanded the Disney concept in my customer service training workshops by encouraging employees to greet customers within 10 seconds of coming within 10 feet of them. I call it the 10-10 rule.