LSC helpline cut back again

From today's Law Society Gazette:

The Legal Services Commission’s telephone helpline is taking emergency calls only in an effort to reduce a backlog of work.

Emergency calls are those requiring action within 48 hours or where the information being sought is not available elsewhere. In July, the commission cut the service to four hours a day.

Now a website notice says non-emergency contacts should be made by email or post. Urgent emails will be replied to within three days and correspondence within two weeks.

reduction in LSC helpline hours explains further.

‘We hope solicitors agree that ensuring they get paid and applications are dealt with needs to take precedence over dealing with non-urgent chaser letters and calls,’ he said.

If they did the work they wouldn't get chased. It's a simple case of limited resources reaching breaking point.

I couldn't help but laugh at the report of people telephing the LSC and being cut off. This has been happening for as long as I can remember.

Many times I have called he LSC (or Legal Aid Board as was) at 3.50pm or around that time and was put on hold after speaking to someone. That someone would then wait until the switchboards turned themselves to night mode thus cutting me off.

When calling back you had the standard "we are closed, call us on a week day between 10am and 11am if you can get through and we have finished eating our biscuits and drinking subsidised tea" message.

"It's hardly surprising that cutting the workforce from 1700 to 1100 resulted in only a marginal decrease in productivity. They probably threw some bananas in the back of a van and the first 600 to jump in were never seen again." - Well, that's what someone said to me. I don't agree in the slightest as I have no frame of reference.

Charles