Office for National Statistics Avis 71

I have already done an ons business survey which as a small business owner trying to keep the business going is something i don't want to spend another 2yrs doing again it does feel like Haressment to have been chosen again!!!

The ONS have said they’ll reissue a £10 voucher that had expired.
Many thanks

Initially I was OK with supporting the ONS by completing surveys- always without payment. I’ve never been offered payment from them?
The last survey involved someone coming to my home, declining to takes shoes off then proceeding to get me to compete an extremely personal and upsetting survey. A lot of the questions were really intrusive and disturbing questions on sexual assault. There was no warning that this was what the survey would be about and with the representative of ONS sat in my home adding pressure to the situation it felt hard not to comply. I was left feeling violated and very distressed afterwards. I don’t know where this information has gone.
Afterwards I received numerous phone calls from a man trying to force me into further interviews. In addition I’ve had letters telling me I am being booked into a further interview in 9 months time. This is a deeply disturbing organisation and on reflection I’m contemplating discussing with my MP.

I completed survey, followed instructions and printed off £10 voucher, took it to shop, declined at the till as a scam.
So embarrassing in front of a queue. There was no number, no barcode, how are we supposed to use it?

Did a survey for the Office of National Statistics to get the £10 gift voucher. I got an Aldi voucher for it but was told at the till it would not work and was un cashable.

Very intrusive information, that could be used by someone for all kinds of scam purposes if it got into the wrong hands. I have no faith that this data would remain private so pulled out of completing the survey.

I used to receive several surveys per year. They now seem to arrive on a weekly basis, all which are legally required to be completed. For a small businesses it’s too much. I am trying to run a business in an incredibly tough business environment, without an overload of unnecessary surveys taking up hours of my time.

Voucher award survey, some people are just not interested.
Ignored the first letter as it is VOLUNTARY... Chaser trying to book an appointment...
Turned up at the house banging the door and looking through the windows.... Give it up, some people don't want to give all their personal details so leave them and send invites to others. Harassment!!!!!!

They came at my property demanding to come inside, they did asked me very personal questions about my income and how much spend , if I receive any benefits ,how much do I spend , everything .
Where do I come from , from which year I'm here, etc

Disgusting harassment and intimidation. Threatening me with court, a £2500 fine and a criminal record.

You can desecrate national monuments and live a life of crime. Yet you'll have a cleaner record than me if I don't complete a useless survey.

Imagine being a law abiding citizen and you can have a criminal record for not completing a survey. What a world we live in

Voucher strategy unnecessarily complex. I gave up and deleted £25 award email. I will not be taking oart in any further studies, take note. A waste of my time.

£50 in vouchers, for 40 mins of my time on the phone.

I've cashed both in (got £25 before the questionaire, and £25 after). I can confirm they are genuine.

The interview was on the phone and lasted 40 minutes. A friendly voice on the other end.

Just make sure you are talking to ONS, and not someone impersonating them. The easiest way to do this is to ring ONS directly, using the number on the website, and check you have indeed been signed up to a "study". They will also give you a pincode that the interviewer must know, to verify them when they ring.

Got sent a threatening letter stating if I didn't fill in the survey - I would receive a £2,500 fine.

The surveys unfortunately aren't active, so when you log in; there's no survey.

So the ONS are now giving small business owners impossible tasks via financial threat.

Called them and apparently 'thousands of business owners' have had this.

So - you log in and there is no survey - so you can't fill the survey in; so liable for a hefty fine!

Please tell me how this is ethical. I have had the worst rigmarole over this and it's actually made me ill.

How on God's earth a government organisation can be so unprofessional and unethical is beyond me.

Had to call and do it verbally - how many thousands of business owners are now facing this issue and becoming stressed over it.

Advice to the ONS - test your digital systems and make sure your digital visitors can actually complete the tasks before you threaten them with fines if they don't!

You could not actually make this up.

Shame on the ONS

The recent collaboration between the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and Glenigan has raised significant concerns within the construction data market. Glenigan's opaque practices and dubious track record cast a shadow over the reliability and integrity of the data they provide.

Their history of selling unsolicited leads and pressuring customers into auto-renewing subpar
sales/leads services is deeply troubling. Additionally, resorting to legal action against small companies over relatively minor amounts further tarnishes their reputation.

The fact that Glenigan's true value in the industry remains elusive to many, coupled with the multitude of complaints against them visible on their Google business profile, underscores the severity of the issue. This partnership with ONS could potentially compromise the accuracy and credibility of vital statistical data, impacting various stakeholders within the construction industry.

In light of these concerns, it is imperative for ONS to reassess their collaboration with Glenigan and prioritize partnerships with entities that uphold transparency, integrity, and ethical business practices. Failure to do so risks undermining the trust in crucial statistical data and could have far-reaching implications for decision-making processes within the construction sector.

We're currently taking part in the latest round of the ONS shapestudy, having just completed the third survey I can't complain. Yes, it is tedious answering the same questions over and over again, but in return we get a £10 voucher of our choice. Had no problems with previous vouchers so I'm happy.

Brilliant a free notebook and £10 voucher ..HOWEVER...after receiving a letter it was put aside to do later as it had 3wks to complete. One week later another arrives with 3wks to complete. A few days later at 20.10hrs a knock at the door with ONS asking when I'm doing the survey giving me until 3rd March, past original date.. Next morning unknown call ( never answer these ) from Portsmouth, voicemail from ONS again telling me to fill in form or receive a visit or phone call.
Did this the next day.. Load of rubbish, some questions are worded different ways to get same answer..
I get the feeling that this isn't a survey for anything else but work availability and benefits.. Today having already done the survey another letter arrives..
So for clarity to the ONS , I'm not a benefit cheat and I retired 2yrs ago and past my retirement age.
ALSO I find out after doing the survey it is NOT obligatory unless a business..
Therefore HARASSMENT......
Save taxpayers money, send a letter, give a complete by date or option to refuse...Use the info you receive.
No need for multiple letters or door knockers at night time, probably council staff on overtime anyway..
Never been so annoyed, oh yes 1 star for a notepad & voucher..

ONS harassing, badgering and hounding people to take part in a "voluntary" survey makes it not so voluntary. Stop wasting tax payers money and actually do something constructive for a change.

Had the original letter about being selected to complete the survey. Got half way through it on line and couldn't answer one question so I couldn't carry on. Have been unwell since then and forgot all about it. Decided I wouldn't bother with it as got more important things to think about. Have subsequently had 2 letters from ONS urging me to complete the survey. Doesn't make it seem voluntary to me. More like being pressured to do it. I'm not really bothered about a £10 voucher I'll not use and the free notepad isn't much use either.

"How can this company improve" asks Trustpilot and "keep things respectful".

OfNS personnel do not know the meaning of the words respectful, courteous or polite. They hide behind their perceived status and seem to think they can treat members of the public like they exist to feed their self importance. Pfft!

Been pestered by this parasitical government organisation for two or more weeks now and it's not the first time they've aggressively pursued us for our private and personal information. They also sent a very, threatening and aggressive thug to our daughter's home. Turning up on spec and demanding to be let in and have access to her personal and private information with complete disregard for the fact she was wfh. She had to close the door on it.

"Voluntary survey" says their junk mail. Pfft! If you don't partake they send a 'reminder' Pfft! and if you ignore that then two days later they send an 'officer' Pfft!
"Anonymous" it says. On junk mail with unique log in code sent to specific addresses. Pfft!

They're nothing more than parasites. You absolutely do not have to complete their surveys and they have no right to enter your home whatever any of their doorstepping thugs might say. They rely on people not knowing their rights and being intimidated by the lanyards they wear and 'government organistion'. Pfft! That is an abuse of position! This is also how criminals operate!

Treat them with the contempt they deserve. If they can't treat people with respect and courtesy they're certainly don't deserve any. It's a two way thing, not something that's owed because certain groups, people, organisations think we all exist for their benefit.

They work for us, remember that

My husband and I had our survey in Oct 2023. The interviewer ( Ian Donnison) came to our house and took down all our information and promised that ONS will pay us £50 each. After waiting for months. I emailed ONS, ONS kept replied that ‘The Survey Support team are currently dealing with your query, and will respond by email as soon as they can’ … I had received this email everytime I emailed them. This made me feel like thieves had stolen the vouchers.