Request for information under the Code on Access to Information — 1823 call answering rate: definition, target and quarterly figures
Dear Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau Digital Policy Office,
I am writing under the Code on Access to Information about 1823, which handles over 7.5 million enquiries and complaints a year. On 7 March 2024 the Office of The Ombudsman recommended that 1823 monitor and review its upgraded telephone system to further enhance its call answering rate. I would like the following records and figures.
1. Please provide the document that defines 1823's call answering rate, showing which calls are counted in the numerator and in the denominator and whether calls abandoned in the queue are excluded.
2. Please provide the target set for the call answering rate, and 1823's actual call answering rate for each quarter of 2023-24, 2024-25 and 2025-26.
3. Please provide, for the same quarters, the number of calls abandoned while waiting and the average and 90th-percentile waiting time to reach a staff member.
Scope limiter: if the full period is unavailable, please provide the most recent available quarterly data. If you refuse any part of this request, please state the provision of the Code on Access to Information relied on.
Yours faithfully,
CHEN Zhengxian
We acknowledge receipt of your e-mail. Thank you. (The above is generated
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16/10/2026
Dear Sir/Madam,
Thank you for your email addressed to the Digital Policy Office (DPO). Please note that DPO has referred this case to 1823 for follow-up.
1823 is currently handling the case and will provide a substantive reply as soon as possible.
Should you have any enquiries, please feel free to contact us.
Best regards,
Sharon Fung
Assistant Manager
1823
(Case Ref: 3-9791319894)
Case Status Enquiry: www.1823.gov.hk/portal/en/login
Contact Us: www.1823.gov.hk/en/about-us/contact-us
Service Disclaimer: www.1823.gov.hk/en/di.shtm
30/10/2026
Dear Sir/Madam,
I refer to your email dated 11 October 2026 to the Digital Policy Office, requesting information on 1823 under the Code on Access to Information. Our response is as follows:
The call answer rate for 1823 measures the percentage of received calls that are handled by live agents and the intelligent interactive telephony system. It excludes abandoned calls (i.e. calls where the caller hangs up while waiting in queue) or calls diverted to the voice mail system.
1823 has not established a specific target for the call answer rate as the answer rate is largely affected by factors that are out of 1823’s control. Based on the available data, the call answer rates for the past three calendar years (from 2023 to 2025) were 66%, 67% and 71% respectively. The annual abandoned call rates were 6.8%, 7% and 6.9% for the same years. 1823 does not maintain statistics on “90th-percentile waiting time to reach a staff member”.
Best regards,
Sharon Fung
Assistant Manager
1823
(Case Ref: 3-9791319894)
Case Status Enquiry: www.1823.gov.hk/portal/en/login
Contact Us: www.1823.gov.hk/en/about-us/contact-us
Service Disclaimer: www.1823.gov.hk/en/di.shtm