ISO/IEC Guide 76:2020

GUIDE 76
Second edition
2020-04
Development of service standards —
Recommendations for addressing
consumer issues
Élaboration des normes de service — Recommandations pour
répondre aux attentes des consommateurs
Reference number
ISO/IEC GUIDE 76:2020(E)
©
ISO/IEC 2020

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ISO/IEC GUIDE 76:2020(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO/IEC 2020
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
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ISO/IEC GUIDE 76:2020(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Using this document . 4
4.1 Consumer interests in services . 4
4.2 Structure . 4
4.3 Benefits of using this document . 4
5 Before starting work on a standard . 4
6 Key consumer principles to be addressed . 7
6.1 General . 7
6.2 Choice . 7
6.3 Access . 7
6.4 Information . 7
6.5 Safety . 7
6.6 Redress . 8
6.7 Sustainability . 8
6.8 Representation . 8
6.9 Quality . 8
6.10 Privacy and data protection . 9
7 How to apply consumer principles across common elements of service .9
7.1 General . 9
7.2 Stages of service provision . 9
7.3 Common elements of service. 9
7.4 Consumer questions .10
Annex A (informative) Consumer issues checklist — Example of an immediate/one-off service.12
Annex B (informative) Consumer issues checklist — Example of an ongoing contractual service .16
Bibliography .20
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ISO/IEC GUIDE 76:2020(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that
are members of ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through
technical committees established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of
technical activity. ISO and IEC technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other
international organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also
take part in the work.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for
the different types of document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (www .iso .org/ directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject
of patent rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent
rights. Details of any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the
Introduction and/or on the ISO list of patent declarations received (www .iso .org/ patents) or the IEC list
of patent declarations received (http:// patents .iec .ch).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) see www .iso .org/
iso/ foreword .html.
This document was prepared by the ISO Committee on Consumer Policy (COPOLCO).
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO/IEC Guide 76:2008), which has been
technically revised.
The main changes compared to the previous edition are as follows:
— addition of consumer principles based on Consumers International’s eight fundamental
consumer rights;
— addition of basic elements of customer service and service provisions;
— integration of customer service and service provision elements with consumer principles within
a table;
— updating of bibliographical references;
— addition of a “what, who/to whom, where, when, and how” approach to developing a service
standard;
— simplification of the text to facilitate its use.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/ members .html.
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Introduction
0.1  Consumers are a key stakeholder group in the standards development process. This document
gives writers of service standards the opportunity to understand the consumer perspective, even when
a consumer representative cannot participate directly in the development process. It is intended for use
by all those involved in the preparation and revision of all service standards.
0.2  Standards are increasingly being developed to cover services. This reflects the increasing
importance of services to the economies of both developed and developing countries. Consumers are
the end users of many services. Delivering services that address key consumer issues is essential to a
successful business.
0.3  Taking the needs of consumers into account is likely to lead to a reduction in customer complaints
and the business costs incurred because of poor service.
0.4  Consumers are individuals with different needs and characteristics. This document enables
standards writers to prepare service standards that take the needs of all consumers into account,
regardless of their circumstances or ability, including those who have different needs (e.g. children,
older people, those with a disability, those from different ethnic and cultural heritages or those who
can be in a vulnerable situation due to illness, bereavement or other personal circumstances).
NOTE The future ISO 22458 will cover inclusive service.
0.5  Consumers are individuals with different needs and characteristics, but collectively they are all
world citizens. Standards developed in accordance with this document can help businesses to address
public concerns at a global level, including ethical and environmental issues.
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GUIDE ISO/IEC GUIDE 76:2020(E)
Development of service standards — Recommendations
for addressing consumer issues
1 Scope
This document provides guidance on how to meet the needs of consumers in the development of service
standards. This document can be used by anyone involved in the development of service standards and
can be applied to any service.
This document is relevant to the full range of services, whether or not a formal contract is entered into
or purchase price paid. It also has relevance for public or charitable services, e.g. education, health and
care provision, where a financial transaction has not necessarily taken place.
This document relates to the provision of services and therefore does not include specific reference to
management systems or professional competence requirements.
2 Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at http:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
access
usability of a product, service (3.11), environment or facility by people with the widest range of
capabilities
3.2
accessible format
different presentation of information, which can make services (3.11) accessible to those with disabilities
3.3
complaint
expression of dissatisfaction made to an organization, related to its product or
service (3.11), or the complaints-handling process itself, where a response or resolution is explicitly or
implicitly expected
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.9.3]
3.4
contract
agreement by which one or more parties are obligated towards one or several other parties to provide
a service (3.11)
Note 1 to entry: A contract can be binding, whether verbal or written.
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3.5
consumer
individual member of the general public who is the end user of services (3.11) or service-related goods
(e.g. a smart speaker)
Note 1 to entry: For the purposes of this document, use of the term “consumer” includes a range of potential and
existing service users, e.g.
— those thinking about using or purchasing a service;
— those who have purchased a one-off service;
— those in a short- or long-term service contract (3.4);
— end-users of a service paying directly for the service;
— end users of a service not paying for the service.
Note 2 to entry: The end user might not be the customer (3.6) who purchased the service, e.g. persons having a
meal at a restaurant that is paid for either by one person in this group or by a different person.
3.6
customer
organization or individual member of the general public purchasing or using services (3.11) for
commercial, private or public purposes
Note 1 to entry: The customer has a direct interaction with the service provider (3.12). The customer can be the
purchaser of the service, or in a contract (3.4) with the service provider. The customer is not necessarily the end
user of a service.
[SOURCE: ISO 26000:2010, 2.3, modified — The words “purchasing property, products or services”
have been replaced with “purchasing or using” and Note 1 to entry has been added.]
3.7
customer satisfaction
customer's (3.6) perception of the degree to which the service provider (3.12) has fulfilled the customer’s
requirements and expectations
Note 1 to entry: Complaints (3.3) are a common indicator of low customer satisfaction, but their absence does not
necessarily imply high customer satisfaction.
Note 2 to entry: Even when customer requirements have been agreed with the customer and fulfilled, this does
not necessarily ensure high customer satisfaction.
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.9.2, modified — The words “the customer’s expectations have been
fulfilled” have been replaced by “the service provider has fulfilled the customer’s requirements and
expectations” and the original Note 1 to entry has been removed.]
3.8
customer service
interaction of an organization with the customer (3.6) throughout the phases of service provision and
after sales service (3.11)
[SOURCE: ISO 10002:2018, 3.5, modified — The article “the” has been replaced with “an” before
“organization” and the words “throughout the life cycle of a product or a service” have been replaced
with “throughout the phases of service provision and after sales service”.]
3.9
consumer representative
individual or organization with the training and experience to advocate and represent the views of
consumers (3.5), in order to protect consumer interests
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3.10
feedback
opinions, comments and expressions of interest in the service (3.11) or the complaints-handling process
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.9.1, modified — The phrase "product," before "service" has been removed.]
3.11
service
activity, or set of activities, provided for the benefit, or to meet the needs, of a consumer (3.5)
Note 1 to entry: Services are generally intangible and often mutable.
Note 2 to entry: A service can be:
— stand-alone, or bundled with a product;
— provided by an organization or an individual;
— a short term, one-off or repeated interaction (e.g. a hotel or restaurant), or part of an ongoing, long term
relationship [e.g. a mobile phone contract (3.4), mortgage or insurance policy];
— provided free of charge or against payment (in advance, in arrears, in instalments), either directly [e.g. to the
service provider (3.12)] or indirectly (e.g. in the case of education, health or care services provided by a local
authority).
Note 3 to entry: Due to the variety and complexity of some services, a different definition of a “service” can apply
in some standards depending on the particular circumstances of the service being provided.
Note 4 to entry: The individual or organization acting as the service provider might offer more than a single
service.
3.12
service provider
entity that offers one or more services (3.11)
Note 1 to entry: The entity can be an individual or an organization.
3.13
safeguard
take precautions to prevent or reduce the impact of a failure in some aspect of service provision
3.14
consumer vulnerability
state in which an individual can be placed at a disadvantage, or at risk of detriment, during his/her
interaction with a service provider (3.12) due to the presence of personal, situational and market
environment factors
Note 1 to entry: Anyone can be vulnerable at any time. Vulnerability can be temporary or permanent.
Note 2 to entry: Factors that contribute to consumer vulnerability can be personal (e.g. health, illness, injuries,
disability, impairment) or situational (e.g. job loss, bereavement, low level of literacy).
Note 3 to entry: An organization’s processes and procedures can reduce or exacerbate consumer vulnerability.
Note 4 to entry: A consumer (3.5) when vulnerable can:
— be at higher risk of experiencing negative outcomes when interacting with service providers;
— have limited ability to maximise his/her wellbeing;
— have difficulty in obtaining or assimilating information;
— be less able to buy, choose or access suitable services (3.11);
— be more susceptible to certain marketing practices.
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3.15
personnel
staff
persons responsible for delivering a service (3.11) on behalf of the service provider (3.12)
Note 1 to entry: Personnel can include volunteers, subcontractors and agents, as well as paid employees.
4 Using this document
4.1 Consumer interests in services
This document provides an overview of how consumer interests should be identified and taken into
account in the development of standards for services.
4.2 Structure
This document outlines the process standards writers should follow to ensure that consumer interests
are considered at all relevant stages of their work:
— Clause 5 outlines a process for standards writers to use to address the key areas of consumer
interest, including the needs of older persons and persons with disabilities. It also gives guidance
on how to ensure consumer interests are considered in the process of making a standard.
— Clause 6 identifies the key consumer issues to be addressed at all stages where there is an interaction
between the service provider and the consumer.
— Clause 7 describes how to apply the consumer principles to key elements of service.
4.3 Benefits of using this document
The application of this document can have widespread benefits for service standards writers, entities
using those standards and the consumers that use those services, as outlined in Table 1.
Table 1 — Benefits of using this document
To standards writers To industry To consumers
 Consumer insight — checklist of  Give consumers what they  Better quality services — higher
key consumer issues to include want and need levels of satisfaction
 Expert advice — in line with best  Keep existing customers and  Safer, more accessible services
practice win new ones
 Provides a template for writing  More efficient processes —  Increased transparency, e.g. costs,
standards — saves time and effort! save money terms and conditions
 Holistic approach, e.g. reminding  Avoid common problems and  More effective redress systems
of relevant standards, legislation and reduce complaints
key horizontal issues
 Ensure consistency  Enhanced credibility and  Increased confidence and trust in
brand reputation service providers
 Provide mechanism for continuous  Maintain and enhance cus-  Increased expectation that the ser-
improvement tomer satisfaction vices will meet the service provider's
value proposition
5 Before starting work on a standard
When drafting a service standard, it is important to ensure that the document deals with all relevant
aspects of the service. Before starting work, it can be helpful to think about the following questions:
a) What does the service consist of?
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This describes the core elements of the service provision and what is on offer to consumers. A service
that offers something a consumer wants or needs is the main reason for consumers to consider using
the service.
b) Who is the service provider?
The service provider is the individual or organization ultimately responsible for delivering the service to
consumers. The service provider is responsible for complying with the agreed service level, regardless
of whether other intermediaries have participated in the process.
c) To whom is the service provided?
The consumers receiving the service are those whose needs and expectations the service intends to
fulfil. It is very important that their profile is clearly identified. The consumers can be individuals or a
group, a person or an organization with legal entity. There can be consecutive service episodes with the
service provider’s objective being to satisfy all of them.
It can be necessary to narrow the range of consumers to whom the service is addressed. If there are
consumers (e.g. children) to whom the service is not addressed, this should be indicated in the scope.
Once the target group of consumers has been identified, research should be conducted to identify their
needs and expectations. It is particularly important that research is done to identify the specific needs
of consumers when vulnerable.
d) Where is the service provided?
The place, physical or virtual, where the service is provided. Is the natural, built or online environment
safe and accessible? Will equipment need to be provided? If so, the safety and accessibility of the
equipment will need to be addressed.
e) When is the service provided?
The moment or period of time when service provision is carried out. The beginning and termination
of a service do not necessarily take place at a specific moment in time and can vary from one service
sector to another. Service can be provided in the form of a single event (e.g. parcel delivery) or as a
continuous provision (e.g. telephone line); it can be composed of just one single core service (e.g. selling
ice cream) or several (e.g. accommodation) and can also include levels or options (e.g. premium or
standard service).
f) How is the service provided?
The way in which the service is provided, including the methodology, sequence or process. Are
personnel involved in the provision of the service? At what points of the service do personnel interact
with consumers?
The process outlined in Table 2 is intended to help ensure that key consumer issues are identified and
addressed when developing a new service standard or at each revision of an existing one.
NOTE This process is based on one in ISO/IEC Guide 71.
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Table 2 — Consideration of consumer issues at service standard development stage
Stage 1: Identify:
Define stand-
— The purpose, scope and field of application of the standard or other deliverable.
ards project
— The different types of service provider that deliver the service.
— Who is likely to use the service? Who is it intended for? Who else can potentially be
impacted by the service?
— What are the potential benefits and risks to consumers?
— What are the current levels of satisfaction with the service, and are there any common
problems that need to be addressed?
Stage 2: Ensure:
Create
— Training is provided for committee members who are unfamiliar with the process of
committee
standards development.
— Committee members are made aware of, and have access to, relevant Guides.
— The committee has balanced representation from service providers and others who
have an interest in the service provided, including consumer representatives.
— Consideration is given to data regarding the consumer experience of the service, e.g.
consumer complaints and accident data.
— The committee makes use of information from other sources such as service providers,
user groups, user surveys/focus groups, market surveillance, validated online reviews.
Stage 3: Ensure:
Develop
— The standard has addressed the needs of the widest range of potential consumers.
content of
standard
— The standard has minimized possible safety, privacy protection and security risks and
provided adequate information about those risks that cannot be eliminated.
— The standard has maximised the accessibility to the widest range of users, including the
use of assistive technology where relevant.
— There are appropriate methods for evaluating performance against consumer
expectations which will also drive continuous improvement.
Stage 4: Ensure:
Review
— The draft standard is circulated to consumer representative groups who can potentially
process
be affected by that specific service to seek comments.
— The draft is circulated to a wide range of business user stakeholders to seek comments.
— Where possible, the trial of the standard with a real-life case study. This can be a good
test of how well it works.
Stage 5: Ensure:
Publish
— The standard can be reproduced in accessible formats, if required.
standard
— There is a plan for the application and promotion of the standard.
Stage 6: The standard needs to be reviewed regularly to ensure continual improvement. The review
Review should consider:
standard
— Who is using the standard?
— How is it used?
— Is it still relevant to consumers?
— Are there any new risks for consumers?
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6 Key consumer principles to be addressed
6.1 General
The key consumer principles, or consumer rights, form the foundation of the consumer interest and
should be considered at every point of service planning, design and delivery where there is likely
to be contact between consumers and service providers (see Clause 7). The considerations of these
principles throughout the development of service standards will help service providers to ensure they
are addressing consumer needs and will drive continuous improvements.
6.2 Choice
Promoting consumer choice is a fundamental consumer principle. Consumers should be offered
comparable and realistic options, so they are able to choose the service that best meets their
requirements. In standardization, this means that a standard should not favour any one particular
supplier or be unnecessarily restrictive of the form of service provision. Various characteristics of a
service will be balanced with the need to maintain value for money and a competitive market.
6.3 Access
Access to services is a function of the ability of consumers to afford the things they need or want, at
a time that is convenient for them. Services should be made available to the largest possible number
of consumers regardless of location, social and economic considerations and physical or mental
impairment. Essential services (such as water, energy and health care) should be accessible to all. The
interests of the full range of consumers from children, older persons, people with variations in physical
and mental abilities and those with different cultural and ethnic backgrounds and their needs should
be included in the development of relevant standards. Standards should ensure that services do not
unreasonably discriminate against any particular group of consumers.
Special consideration should be given to identifying and responding to consumers when vulnerable who,
due to a wide range of personal factors, can be at risk of disadvantage or detriment when interacting
with a service provider and require a more flexible and inclus
...