An email arrives, it’s fifteen pages alleging professional negligence, citing legislation and court precedents and demanding compensation within seven days.  The customer disputes a valuation or an auction result, and although preparing the complaint may have taken an aggrieved consumer minutes, understanding and answering it could consume much of a  certified valuer’s or certified auctioneer’s working day.

For AVAA Certified Valuers (CVAu) and AVAA Certified Auctioneers (CAAu), this illustrates an emerging challenge. Artificial intelligence gives consumers powerful help to articulate concerns, while also producing lengthy complaints that often have inaccurate references, misplaced confidence, and expectations that require careful explanation.

A disagreement that once prompted a telephone conversation or a simply angry email can now arrive dressed as a legal submission. Formal language, references to legislation and allegations of professional misconduct give the document an appearance of authority. Each assertion takes time to assess, particularly when the customer expects a detailed response to every paragraph.

For a small valuation practice or auction business, responding to a complaint is lost productivity. Time spent checking citations, reconstructing instructions and answering repeated correspondence competes with inspections, research, client appointments and auction preparation. The emotional pressure can be considerable when an authoritative document questions someone’s competence or integrity.

Consider a customer who challenges a valuation because an AI tool has identified a higher advertised price. A certified valuer must explain the valuation date, purpose, asset condition and evidence supporting the assessment. An auction complaint might similarly require careful examination of bidding records, published conditions and the sequence of events.

The key response is AVAA Professional Standard 10 – Customer Complaints Handling, which provides a framework for approaching these situations with professional discipline. It applies to certified valuers, certified auctioneers, and AVAA Corporate Members, establishing expectations for fair assessment, respectful communication, appropriate records and timely resolution.

Under AVAA Professional Standard 10, the starting point is a written complaint identifying the relevant engagement, the concern, the outcome sought and supporting information. Acknowledgement and preliminary assessment then help establish the issues requiring investigation and whether legal, insurance or other professional advice should be obtained.

This structure is particularly valuable when AI has expanded a straightforward grievance into an elaborate submission. Asking focused questions helps establish precisely what happened and what resolution the customer seeks. A practitioner can summarise their understanding, invite clarification and organise the response around the substantive issues that require consideration.

Legal references are common in an AI-generated consumer complaint, and these deserve verification with specialist advice sought where appropriate. Assessment should also return to the engagement terms, contemporaneous records, applicable standards and information available when the service was provided. For both professions, a well-maintained file becomes an essential foundation for a clear, reasoned response.

Throughout the process, the person behind the document deserves consideration. AI can help consumers overcome language or literacy barriers and express legitimate concerns. Professional judgement involves recognising those circumstances, listening carefully and explaining findings in language the customer can understand.

PS10 also supports proportionate boundaries, including circumstances where communications may be limited or managed through advisers. Where concerns are substantiated, it provides for reasonable corrective action. Its framework balances consumer interests with procedural fairness for practitioners and recognises that allegations require assessment against evidence.

As AI-assisted complaints become more familiar, certified valuers and certified auctioneers have an opportunity to demonstrate what professional accountability looks like in practice. Applying AVAA Professional Standard 10 consistently, preserving records and responding with patience and precision strengthens trust in their work and the credentials they hold. That commitment matters particularly when a difficult exchange puts professional relationships under pressure.

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Interested In Finding Out More?

If you’d like more information on the AVAA Certified Valuer (CVAu), send an email to certification@avaa.com.au or telephone 1300 928 165.  You can also stay up to date by following AVAA on LinkedIn, X/Twitter and Facebook.
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