Colorado WIC Program Policies and Procedures Section 11: Civil Rights Revised: 03/01/2026 Page 1 of 1 Customer Service Complaint Processing Policy: The State Office must have procedures to document the handling of complaints by participants, parents or caretakers of infant or child participants, proxies, vendors, farmers, and home delivery contractors. Regulations: 7 CFR 246.12, 7 CFR 246.8(b) Procedure/Additional Guidance: The specific procedures for handling customer service complaints follow: ● Right to File a Complaint: Any person alleging mistreatment has a right to file a customer service complaint. ● Acceptance: All customer service complaints, written or verbal, shall be accepted and documented by local or state WIC staff. Complaints elevated to the WIC clinic supervisor and/or state office must be documented in the Compass Customer Service Log. When possible, signed written statements from the complainant should be scanned into Compass. For vendor-related complaints, local agency staff should collect information, including the vendor’s name, details of the complaint, and the date and time the issue occurred. Once this information is gathered, Local agency staff should forward the complaint details to their Local Agency Retailer Coordinator (LARC). The LARC will then elevate the complaint and report it to the State Benefit Delivery Unit (BDU) for further review. ● Verbal Complaints: In the event a complainant makes verbal allegations, such as through a phone conversation, and is not inclined to place the allegations in writing, the person receiving those allegations must document them in the Compass Customer Service Log. Every effort should be made to capture the full complaint; staff members are encouraged to reread the statement back to the complainant to verify the accuracy of the information recorded. ● Tracking Complaints: Once a complaint is documented, immediate and appropriate follow-up is needed. Document the follow up plan in the Compass Customer Service Log resolution text box. Follow-up may include any of the following items. ✔ Agency WIC Director or staff supervisor clarifies the complaint with the complainant, if needed. ✔ Local agency staff consults with the agency WIC Director to develop a plan to resolve the situation. ✔ Local agency WIC Director consults with State Nutrition Consultant, BDU Coordinator, and/or Civil Rights Coordinator to develop a plan for corrective action (e.g., staff training on customer service, policy clarification, staff monitoring). ✔ State Nutrition Consultant and/or Civil Rights Coordinator contacts local agency WIC Director to discuss the complaint, if complaint is received at State WIC Office. ✔ Plan for follow-up with the complainant and the staff, as appropriate. ● Follow-up Plan: Staff documents the follow-up plan in the Compass Customer Service Log Resolution text box. Local Agencies are encouraged, but not required, to keep a written tracking log of all customer service related complaints. This tracking log enables local agencies to track problem resolution, as well as identify any repeated occurrences. Copies of customer service complaints against specific vendors should be kept on file at both the state and local levels.