Land & Property Services (LPS) operational service standards
Date published:
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Our commitments to you
When you deal with Land & Property Services (LPS), you can expect to be treated fairly, clearly and with respect.
At a minimum, you can expect us to resolve routine or straightforward requests within 15 working days
If your query is more complex, it may take longer, but we’ll let you know what to expect. This would include queries or requests that are dependent on external processes or sources of information.
You can find more details on our operational service standards including timescales of more complex cases and requests below:
LPS operational service standards
Rates
- We are committed to responding to customer correspondence and enquiries within clear and reliable timeframes. We aim to:
- respond to written correspondence within 15 working days, this may include informing ratepayers that a fuller response may take longer;
- answer telephone calls promptly and provide alternative contact options, particularly when our phone lines are busy
- Our new Rates Online service offers customers a convenient way to manage and submit queries about their rate accounts. As this is a new digital channel, we will be actively monitoring usage, performance and customer experience to ensure it continues to meet user needs. We will aim to acknowledge and respond to all Rates Online queries within 15 working days.
- Applications for Rate Relief will be assessed promptly. Once all information required to determine entitlement has been received, we aim to issue a decision within 15 working days. Please note that where additional information is required from third parties, this may result in a longer processing time.
Valuation
- Rating Valuation aim to respond to customer call back requests within 48 hours of submission
- We aim to complete a requested rating valuation review from a member of the public within 90 days. If this is not possible, we will contact you to explain the delay and will aim to complete the valuation within a further 90 days.
- For the issue of Valuation Certificates, we aim to process all Certificates of Revision within six weeks of receipt. If a revised rates bill is required, Revenue and Benefits aim to issue this within 10 working days of processing the certificate.
- Domestic Appeal cases (Article 54) will be determined within 28 days of receipt, where possible.
Land Registration
Land Registration aims to complete:
- 90% of Registrable Applications within 25 working days
- 90% of Priority Searches within 10 working days
- 90% of Copy Documents issued within 15 working days after the first order
- 95% of LIS map searches 10 working days after first order
If you contact Land Registration, we aim to provide the following level of service:
- 85% of inbound calls will be answered within 40 seconds
- Client correspondence will be responded to within 15 working days (this relates to both e-mails and letters)
Mapping (OSNI)
The Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland (OSNI) aim to:
- Complete map update requests of 10 survey units or more within six months of receiving them
- Complete agreements and contracts within 20 working days.
If you contact OSNI and leave a voicemail on 0300 200 7804, this inbox is monitored, and all messages are responded to within 24 hours, provided the customer has supplied sufficient contact details.
If you contact the OSNI Mapping Helpdesk e-mail address (Mapping.Helpdesk@finance-ni.gov.uk) you will receive an acknowledgement immediately.
Contacting LPS
Help shape our services
We are committed to making our services as easy to use as possible for everyone. We use feedback, complaints, and research to improve our services. Please let us know if you would be interested in:
- providing feedback (this could be completing a survey or a short conversation) on the services you use and/ or
- taking part in tests of our current and/ or new services.
You can register your willingness to help us by sending your contact details to customerservices@lpsni.gov.uk.
If things go wrong - complaints and redress
Despite our best efforts, we know there may be times when our service does not meet your expectations.
If you are not satisfied with the standard of service you have received, we have a clear and fair complaints procedure to put things right. We take all complaints seriously and handle them sensitively. You can find information on our complaints process on the nidirect website at Complaining to Land & Property Services.