Number of complaints at De Watergroep almost doubled after software problems

The company is struggling with the difficult introduction of a new software system, but “Flemish families and companies should not fall victim to internal problems,” says Van Rompuy.

De Watergroep switched to a new software system in November 2023. However, the platform suffered from teething problems, and since then it has been raining complaints. Because customer service was overloaded, waiting times increased, resulting in new complaints, Van Rompuy explains. “This created a kind of snowball effect.”

The figures show that almost half of the complaints in 2024 were related to ‘customer matters’, and could therefore be traced back to the software system. But the number of people discussing technical matters and communication also peaked in 2024, Van Rompuy notes.

Recruitments

The Flemish CD&V faction leader calls on De Watergroep to act quickly. The company itself has already indicated that the latest system improvements must be implemented by April 2025, he says, but that is more than a year and a half after the introduction of the new software system. “De Watergroep provides an important service for many Flemish families and companies. The number and type of complaints must therefore be monitored very closely,” says Van Rompuy.

He calls it positive that De Watergroep has already made several dozen recruitments to eliminate the administrative backlog.