Railroad Retirement Board
Railroad Retirement Board Customer
Service Update
December 2006
The U.S. Railroad Retirement Board’s Customer Service Plan
promotes the principles and objectives of customer-driven quality service
agency-wide. The RRB’s plan states specifically the
level of service that customers can expect, and an important part of the plan
is a pledge to keep beneficiaries informed of how well the RRB is meeting the
plan’s standards. The plan is reviewed and updated periodically as the agency
gains more experience with it, compares its service with the best in business
and considers feedback received from its customers.
The following
questions and answers provide information about the RRB’s
performance in the key areas of retirement applications, survivor applications,
disability applications and payments, railroad unemployment and sickness
benefit applications and claims, as well as the handling of correspondence
during fiscal year 2006 (October 1, 2005 – September 30, 2006 ). Included are
the customer service performance goals the RRB set for fiscal year 2006 in its
Annual Performance Plan. These goals are revised annually based on such factors
as projected workloads and available resources. Also included is information on
the RRB’s overall performance, as measured by the
timeliness index developed by the agency.
1. How does the RRB measure overall
timeliness for customer service?
The RRB
developed an index to measure the overall timeliness of its customer service in
four benefit areas: retirement applications; survivor applications; disability
applications and payments; and railroad unemployment and sickness benefit
applications and claims. This composite indicator, based on a weighted average,
allows for a more concise and meaningful presentation of its
customer service efforts in these benefit areas.
2. How timely, overall, was the
customer service provided by the RRB in fiscal year 2006, as measured by this
timeliness index?
During fiscal
year 2006, the overall benefit timeliness index stood at 98.6 percent. This
means that the RRB provided benefit services within the timeframes promised in
the Customer Service Plan 98.6 percent of the time. More detailed performance
information for specific benefit areas is presented in the questions and
answers that follow.
3. What standards were used by the
RRB in fiscal year 2006 for processing applications for railroad retirement
employee or spouse annuities and how well did it meet those standards?
Under the RRB’s standards, if you filed for a railroad retirement
employee or spouse annuity in advance, you will receive your first payment, or
a decision, within 35 days of the beginning date of your annuity. If you have
not filed in advance, you will receive your first payment, or a decision,
within 65 days of the date you filed your application.
Of the cases
processed during fiscal year 2006, 92.9 percent of both employee and spouse
applicants who filed in advance received a payment, or a decision, within 35
days of their annuity beginning date. Average processing times for employee and
spouse applications were 15.2 and 9.6 days, respectively; the combined average
processing time for these cases was 12.5 days.
Also, of the
cases processed, 98.1 percent of employee and 95.1 percent of spouse applicants
who had not filed in advance received a payment, or a decision, within 65 days
of their filing dates. Taken together, 96.2 percent of these cases met the
agency’s standard. In these cases, the average processing times for employee
and spouse applications were 19.2 and 19.7 days, respectively; the combined
average processing time was 19.5 days.
The RRB’s goals in fiscal year 2006 were 92.0 and 94.0 percent
timeliness, respectively, for those filing in advance and those not filing in
advance.
4. What standards were used in the
area of survivor benefits in fiscal year 2006?
Under the
standards, if you filed for a railroad retirement survivor annuity or a
lump-sum benefit, you will receive your first payment, or a decision, within 65
days of the date you filed your application, or became entitled to benefits, if
later. If you are already receiving a spouse annuity, you will receive your
first payment, or a decision, within 35 days of the date the RRB receives
notice of the employee’s death.
Of the cases
considered during fiscal year 2006, 93.2 percent of the applicants for an
initial survivor annuity received a payment or a decision within 65 days. In
addition, 97.5 percent of the applicants for a lump-sum benefit received a payment
or a decision within 65 days. In cases where the survivor was already receiving
a spouse annuity, 95.7 percent of the applicants received a payment or a
decision within 35 days of the RRB being notified of the employee’s death.
Average processing time for all applications for recurring monthly benefits
(initial survivor applications and spouse to survivor conversions) was 20.2
days. The average processing time for lump-sum applications was 9.6 days.
The goals for
fiscal year 2006 were 80.0 percent and 90.0 percent timeliness, respectively,
for payment of a survivor annuity and for payment of a lump sum. For those
already receiving a spouse annuity, the goal was 90.0 percent timeliness for
payment of the survivor annuity.
5. What standards were used by the
RRB in fiscal year 2006 for processing applications for disability annuities
under the Railroad Retirement Act?
Under the
Customer Service Plan, if you filed for a disability annuity, you will receive
a decision within 105 days of the date you filed your application. If it is
determined that you are entitled to disability benefits, you will receive your
first payment within 25 days of the date of the RRB’s
decision, or the earliest possible payment date, whichever is later.
Of the cases
processed during fiscal year 2006, 65.9 percent of those filing for a
disability annuity received a decision within 105 days of the date they filed
an application. The average processing time was 92.1 days. Of those entitled to
disability benefits, 95.2 percent received their first payment within the
Customer Service Plan’s time frame. Average processing time was 7.9 days.
The agency’s
goals were 55.0 percent and 92.0 percent timeliness, respectively, for
disability decisions and disability payments.
6. What were the standards for the
handling of applications and claims for railroad unemployment and sickness
benefits and how well did the RRB meet these standards?
Under the
standards, if you filed an application for unemployment or sickness benefits,
you will receive a claim form, or a decision, within 15 days of the date you
filed your application. If you filed a claim for subsequent biweekly
unemployment or sickness benefits, you will receive your payment, or a
decision, within 15 days of the date the RRB receives your claim form.
During fiscal
year 2006, 99.5 percent of unemployment benefit applications sampled for
timeliness and 99.5 percent of sickness benefit applications processed met the RRB’s standard. Average processing times for unemployment
and sickness benefit applications were 0.3 and 1.4 days, respectively.
In addition,
99.8 percent of subsequent claims processed for unemployment and sickness
benefits met the RRB’s standard for fiscal year 2006.
The average processing time for claims was 3.9 days.
The agency’s
goals for processing unemployment and sickness applications in fiscal year 2006
were 96.0 percent timely for both unemployment and sickness. The payment or
decision goal for subsequent claims was 98.0 percent timeliness.
7. What was the standard for
replying to correspondence in fiscal year 2006?
The Customer
Service Plan states that when you inquire by letter, you will receive a reply
within 15 days of the date the agency receives your inquiry. If for any reason
the RRB cannot reply within that time frame, it will acknowledge the letter and
tell you how long it will be before your questions can be answered fully.
In fiscal year
2006, 98.4 percent of all correspondence the RRB received was responded to,
either with an acknowledgement or with a final reply, within the standard.
The goal for
2006 was set at 95.0 percent.
8. How did the RRB’s
performance in meeting its standards in fiscal year 2006 compare to its
performance in fiscal year 2005?
Fiscal year
2006 performance improved when compared to fiscal year 2005 for initial
survivor applications, lump-sum death benefits, spouse to survivor conversions,
and disability payments. Also, the agency exceeded all of the customer service
performance goals it had set for the year in its Annual Performance Plan.
9. Can beneficiaries provide
feedback to the RRB about the service they receive?
A Customer
Assessment Survey form is available in every field office allowing
beneficiaries to evaluate the service they received and suggest how the agency
can improve its service. Persons not satisfied with the service they received
may contact the manager of the office with which they have been dealing or the
regional director who is responsible for that office. Their names and addresses
are available in each office.
The addresses
and phone numbers of all the RRB’s field offices are
also available on the agency’s Web site at www.rrb.gov
or by calling the toll-free RRB
Help Line at 1-800-808-0772. The RRB Help Line is an automated telephone
service available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Applications for railroad retirement or survivor benefits
are generally filed at one of the RRB's field
offices, or with an RRB representative at one of the office's Customer OutReach Program (CORP) service locations, or by telephone
and mail. Persons can find the address and phone number of the RRB
office serving their area by calling the automated toll-free RRB Help Line at
1-800-808-0772, or from the RRB's Web site at www.rrb.gov. Most RRB
offices are open to the public from
Public Affairs 312-751-4777
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