Customer complaints code

Did you sign up with Cuckoo Fibre before 23 July 2025? If you did, your Complaints Policy can be found here

At Cuckoo Broadband, we aim to always provide our customers with an exceptional level of customer service. From time to time, things can unfortunately go wrong; when they do, we would like to hear about it, to fix it and learn from it.

This policy explains how customers can make a complaint, what they can expect from Cuckoo, and how to take things further if we are unable to resolve their complaint to their satisfaction.

What counts as a complaint?

A complaint is when a customer informs Cuckoo that they are unhappy with our service, or how we’ve handled a previous issue.

Ofcom defines a complaint in the General Conditions (GC C4.2) as:

“An expression of dissatisfaction made by a customer to a Communications Provider related to the provision of services, or to the complaint-handling process itself, where a response or resolution is explicitly or implicitly expected.”

Therefore, for something to count as a complaint, it must:

• Express dissatisfaction about the service or handling of a previous complaint, and;
• Involve either an explicit or implied expectation of a response or resolution.

What is an Expression of Displeasure?

An Expression of Displeasure, also known as an EoD, might be a negative comment or feedback along the lines of:

• “I don’t like how this works.”
• “Your service has been really slow recently.”

If a customer doesn’t expect a response or resolution, and Cuckoo interprets it as merely feedback or opinion, it likely wouldn’t qualify as a complaint under Ofcom’s definition.

Why this distinction matters?

As a provider, Cuckoo must follow the complaint procedures stipulated in the Ofcom General Conditions, if a complaint is recognised under the Ofcom definition.

EoDs don’t trigger the regulatory obligations unless they meet the above Ofcom definition of what a complaint is.

Misclassifying a complaint as mere feedback (i.e. an EoD) can result in non-compliance with the Ofcom regulations.

How can a customer make a complaint?

A customer can make a complaint using different methods:

• Phone
• Email
• Post
• App (customers using our app can also submit a complaint through the online enquiry form available within the app).

We will require the below details whenever a customer gets in touch to make a complaint:

-            Customer’s name and contact details

-            A clear description of the issue

-            Any reference numbers or account details (if available)

What happens next?

• We will acknowledge the complaint within
• We will do our best to resolve it within
• If more time (beyond 1 working day) is needed to resolve the complaint, the customer will have to be kept regularly updated.  

When a customer submits a complaint, they can select their preferred method of communication from a drop-down menu. If SMS is chosen, they will receive regular one-way (Cuckoo outbound updates which doesn’t support customer replies) text message updates throughout each relevant stage of the complaints process.

Cuckoo complaints process

Cuckoo’s customer service team is the first point of call for a complaint; the customer service advisor will try to resolve a customer’s complaint whilst the customer is on the call.

If the customer isn’t happy with the advisor’s solution, they can request for their complaint to be escalated to a customer service team leader, who will aim to revert within 1 working day. The team leader will either suggest a resolution, or next steps, with a timeframe of when we’ll get back to them.

Still not satisfied?

• If a customer isn’t happy with how our customer service team advisors have handled their complaint, they can ask for it to be escalated to a customer service team leader.
• If the customer remains unhappy with the team leader’s attempt at a resolution, the complaint will be escalated to the customer service manager, who will revert to the customer within 5 working days.
•  If the customer remains dissatisfied following the customer service manager’s intervention, or Cuckoo have been unable to resolve the complaint after 8 weeks via our internal complaints process, the following steps must be taken in line with Ofcom requirements:

1.       Deadlock Letter

If we have reached a point where no further progress can be made and both parties (i.e. Cuckoo and the customer) cannot agree on a resolution, Cuckoo will issue a deadlock letter; we’ll issue this at any point we believe the complaint has reached a stage where no further resolution is possible, OR a customer can request it if they feel the complaint is going nowhere.

The deadlock letter will confirm that the complaint remains unresolved and enables the customer to escalate the matter to the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Scheme.

2.       Referral to the Ombudsman

Customers have the right to refer their complaint to our approved Ombudsman service if:

-            They have received a deadlock letter from us; or

-            8 weeks have passed since the complaint was first raised, and it remains unresolved (even if a deadlock letter has not been issued).

Cuckoo are registered with an Ofcom- approved ADR scheme:

Communications Ombudsman

Website: Resolve Communications Complaints | Communications Ombudsman

Phone: 0330 440 1614

Email: enquiries@ombudsman-services.org

Post: Communications Ombudsman, P.O. Box 730, Warrington, WA4 6WU

Need this in another format?

We can provide this policy- free of charge- for customers who require it in an alternative format, including braille, large print, or audio. Please contact our customer service team to request this.

Where to find this policy?

-            Cuckoo website:

-            At the point of sale

-            You can request a free printed copy at any time.