Broadcast complaints

Each year Ofcom deals with thousands of complaints from viewers and listeners about programmes they've seen and heard on TV and radio.

But what happens after we receive your complaints?

This guide shows you how we deal with your complaints, from the moment we first receive them right through to the end of the process.

What can you complain about?

We can consider complaints about programmes transmitted by all broadcasters licensed in the UK as well as the BBC and S4C.

However, we cannot consider complaints about accuracy and impartiality in BBC TV and radio programmes. These complaints have to be dealt with by the BBC Trust.

Ofcom is a post-transmission regulator - that means we can only look at complaints about programmes that have already been broadcast.

You can also complain to us if you believe you've been treated unfairly in a programme - or that your privacy has been infringed without good reason in the programme or in the way it was made.

Making a complaint

If you want to make a complaint then try to submit it as quickly as possible after the programme has aired. This is because broadcasters are only required to keep recordings for a certain period of time.

You can complain in one of two ways.

Firstly, you can fill in an online complaints form.

You will be asked to provide your name and contact details, together with details about the programme concerned. These include the name and date of the programme, the time and channel on which it was broadcast, as well as the nature of the complaint.

You can also complain by phone by calling 020 7981 3040, 0300 123 3333, or if you want to complain in Welsh 020 7981 3042.

Every complaint is acknowledged and you will be given a reference number.

Each Wednesday we publish a list of programmes that have attracted more than 10 complaints in the last week. Click here for the list from last week. (We do not include fairness and privacy complaints in this list.)

What happens next?

Every single complaint we receive is examined by our Consumer Support team and assessed against the Broadcasting Code. As part of this examination Ofcom may ask for a copy of the material from the broadcaster.

The Code sets standards for television and radio shows which broadcasters have to follow. It includes rules designed to protect viewers and listeners from harm and offence - such as what can be screened on TV before the 9pm watershed.

Other areas of the Broadcasting Code address issues such as impartiality and accuracy, sponsorship and commercial references as well as fairness and privacy.

If, following this initial assessment, it appears that a programme has not broken the rules then the complaint is closed.

However, if we do believe it raises issues under the Code then the complaint is passed to our Standards Team who will begin an investigation.

The investigation process

Parliament gave Ofcom the duty and powers to investigate TV and radio complaints through the Communications Act 2003.

Each investigation is a formal process which can take weeks but in some cases months, depending on the complexity and the issues involved.

If we think there may be an issue, we write to the broadcaster and ask for its formal representations, including why it believes the programme concerned has complied with the Broadcasting Code.

Following this correspondence with the broadcaster we may decide that no breach has occurred.

But if we believe a breach has occurred then we will write a decision (also known as a finding) recording the breach and inform the broadcaster.

The decision details the nature of our investigation, summarises the broadcaster's response, and explains why the programme breached our Code.

The decision on the complaint is then published in our fortnightly Broadcast Bulletin.

The complainant is informed of our decision at the same time as publication.

We also sometimes publish cases which have been found not to have breached the Code.

This may be because we received a lot of complaints or that there has been a lot of interest in the programme and we think it would be useful to publish the decision.

Sanctions

In very serious cases - such as when we believe a broadcaster has seriously, deliberately, repeatedly, or recklessly breached the Code - then the case is referred to our Content Sanctions Committee.

It can impose a number of possible sanctions. For instance, it can direct a broadcaster not to repeat material or to publish a summary of our adjudication.

The BBC was fined £150,000 over two episodes of the Russell Brand radio show, which featured the comedian and Jonathan Ross leaving a series of messages on the answer phone of Fawlty Towers actor Andrew Sachs. Read more about that case

The Committee can also fine a broadcaster as well as take away their licence to broadcast (with the exception of the BBC, Channel 4 and S4C).

Appeals

If broadcasters or complainants are dissatisfied with our decisions then they can ask for an appeal.

Ofcom will consider any request for an appeal, but may not always grant one.

An appeal is always considered by someone who has not been involved in the case.