Workshop overview:

This practical session equips participants with the knowledge and tools to handle distress and inconvenience awards appropriately.

  • types of compensation: exploring the different forms of customer redress and when each is appropriate
  • purpose of distress and inconvenience awards: understanding why and when these awards are applied
  • assessment and decision-making: where to start, key considerations, and evaluating the customer impact, including indirect or ripple effects
  • best practice guidance: ensuring decisions are fair, compliant, and consistent.

Learning outcomes:

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

  • understand the purpose and role of distress and inconvenience awards in customer compensation
  • identify the different ways to compensate customers fairly and effectively
  • assess the impact of a complaint on the customer, including wider ‘ripple’ effects
  • make informed decisions on award levels by considering both regulatory guidance and customer circumstances
  • apply a consistent and professional approach when handling awards to ensure transparency and fairness.

Interested in taking any of our workshops in-house

Whether you are seeking to upskill your team, enhance productivity or foster a culture of continuous learning, we can deliver customised training programmes designed to meet your specific needs. If you have an enquiry, you can complete the in-house form and our training team will be in touch with next steps.

Area of expertise:
Caroline Wells

Caroline Wells

Caroline Wells owner, Caroline Wells Consultancy

Caroline's background has always been in customer service - and over the last 35 + years (with 20 of those at the Financial Ombudsman Service), she ha...

Caroline's background has always been in customer service - and over the last 35 + years (with 20 of those at the Financial Ombudsman Service), she has significant experience in dispute resolution, senior operational leadership, consumer vulnerability and customer experience.

Caroline runs her own consultancy business, working directly with firms and organisations across the private and public sector on all things customer service related. As well as holding a number of appointed and senior advisory roles, she also works in partnership with UK Finance to bring her real-life and current experience to members, from practical training for frontline staff to strategy-focused sessions for those overseeing customer service and complaints functions. This year Caroline was recognised on the 2025 Industry Leaders List; for her contribution to positive industry change and making a measurable difference to dispute resolution in debt recovery and enforcement.  

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