In Aotearoa New Zealand, when you report a pothole, a broken street light or dumped rubbish to your council, you make a "request for service". Many councils shorten it to RFS. This post explains how a request for service works, which council or agency looks after what, and how councils can get reports that crews can act on.
Localtech Eye is now taking New Zealand councils. There is no resident service in New Zealand yet.
Who looks after what
New Zealand has several kinds of council, and they do different jobs.
- District and city councils look after most local services: local roads and footpaths, street lights on local roads, rubbish and recycling, parks, and stormwater. Drinking water and wastewater are often council services too, run by the council or by a council-owned organisation.
- Regional councils look after the environment across a wider area, such as rivers, flood protection and air and water quality. In many regions they also run public transport.
- Unitary authorities do the work of both a district or city council and a regional council.
- State highways are the job of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, not the local council.
If you are not sure which council covers a place, govt.nz has a page to contact your local council. If you report to the wrong council, staff can usually pass it on, but it takes longer.
If someone is in danger, call 111.
How a request for service works
Most district and city councils take requests for service in several ways:
- by phone to the council's customer services team
- through a "report a problem" or "request for service" form on the council website
- by email
- through a reporting app that the council supports
After the council receives the request, the steps are usually the same:
- The council logs the request and gives it a reference number.
- An officer checks that it is the council's job, and that it is not a duplicate.
- The council sets a priority, based on risk.
- The job goes to a team or a contractor.
- The work is done and the request is closed.
- In many councils, the person who reported it hears back.
For more detail on these steps, read What happens after you report a problem to your council.
What makes a good request for service
A request that a crew can act on has five things:
- What it is. Pick the closest type of problem, and add a short description.
- Where it is. An exact location is best. Give the road name, the nearest number or intersection, and a landmark. A map pin is better still.
- A photo. It shows the size of the problem. Only take one when it is safe.
- When you saw it. The date and time.
- Your contact details. The council may need to ask a question, and can tell you when the job is done.
On rural roads, location matters even more. A long road with few houses is hard to search. A map pin can save a crew a long drive.
What councils should look for in a reporting channel
If you work in customer services, roading or IT at a New Zealand council, ask these questions about any reporting app or form:
- Does each report carry the five things above? Without them, staff must call the resident back.
- Does it use your council's own list of problems? Your categories, not a generic list.
- Does it check the council boundary? Reports near a boundary often go to the wrong council.
- Where does the report land? In your system, ready to assign, or in an inbox to retype?
- How does the resident hear back? Status updates cut repeat calls.
- Who can see the reports, and where is the data held? Know the country and the provider. Check your obligations under the Privacy Act 2020 with your own privacy officer.
How Localtech Eye works
Localtech Eye is a free resident app for iOS, Android and the web. It is live today for Queensland councils in Australia.
- The resident picks the problem from the council's own list and adds up to five photos.
- The app removes location details from the photo files before upload. The time and place of capture go to the council as separate fields.
- The resident drops a pin, and the app checks that it is inside the council's boundary.
- The report goes with the resident's name and contact details.
- Reports are not visible to other residents.
- Each council's data sits in its own database, in its own country's region. For a New Zealand council, that means New Zealand.
Today, councils receive Localtech Eye reports by email, with the photos, the map point, the address and the resident's contact details. Staff then contact the resident directly.
We are now taking New Zealand councils. Until one is live, residents should use their council's own channels. See the New Zealand page for details.
Learn more and talk to us
For a fuller guide to request channels, triage and closing the loop, read Citizen service requests: how councils take reports. Small district councils may also like Issue reporting software for small and rural councils. If you work at a New Zealand council, book a demo to see how Localtech Eye works today.