The Ombudsman report, released on Wednesday, showed 185 complaints from Launceston, the most in Tasmania.

Bellerive came second with 169 complaints and Devonport had 157. Rounding out the top 10 were suburbs all in the south of the state.

Tasmania represented 1.9 per cent of the national complaints. We have 2.1 per cent of Australia’s population.

The increased number of complaints is concerning. Compared to the previous financial year, complaints had increased by 38.4 per cent.

Change is often forced upon us as technology advances. There is no choice but to adapt.

Manufacturers stopped producing the VCR forcing consumers to switch to DVD or streaming online.

There was the switch from analog television to digital signal.

And, most recently we’ve had the introduction of the National Broadband Network.

Great technology, but frustrating at times when the change happens, but it isn’t a smooth transition.

This has forced some people to go for weeks without a landline telephone or internet connection. 

The problems don’t rest entirely with the NBN, but also the retail service providers. 

The main issue raised in Tasmania was customer service. In fact, nearly 50 per cent of the complaints related to customer service.

Billing and payments, faults, complaint handling, connection and contracts all followed.

The Ombudsman report indicated that 90.8 per cent of the complaints were able to be resolved by the customer (whether it be residential or small business related) and the provider working together to solve the issues.

The frustration with large companies is the lack of empathy displayed. This is often due to process, poor training or people not suited to the job they are in.

Good customer service requires empathy, patience and ability to problem solve.

It’s also important to remember that the person representing the provider is a human with feelings.

Therefore some form of respect must remain in order to attempt to get a positive result.