Using chat in Adviser Online

Adviser Online’s chat feature allows you to connect with our consultants to get assistance on a wide range of topics relating to your clients’ accounts.

To get the most out of your chat experience and avoid delays:

• Have all your relevant documentation and questions ready before you initiate the chat to ensure a seamless experience. Please note that our consultants can view the transcript of your previous chats if your message relates to an earlier enquiry.
• Avoid general questions when the enquiry relates to a specific client account. Please provide as much information as possible, including the account number, to ensure the consultant can provide accurate and complete information.
• Don’t share any sensitive information, such as your password or Tax File Numbers (TFN), on chat.
• If you prefer to dictate your message using speech-to-text technology, Microsoft 365 and Apple dictation services can help you draft chat messages before you paste it into your chat
• Enable browser notifications so you’ll receive an alert for any new messages received from the chat consultant, if you are browsing in another tab.

You can start a new chat with us and leave a message at any time. However, consultants will only be available to chat, Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 7:00pm Sydney time (excluding national public holidays). If you start a chat outside of these hours, your chat will be a ready for a consultant to connect and respond once they become available during chat hours.

Once you’re connected to a consultant, you can choose to respond immediately or at a time that suits you. If you can’t continue to chat after you’ve connected to a consultant, simply return later and continue the same chat.

When you return to your chat, you’ll be able to respond to previous messages and send new messages to reconnect with a consultant. We'll attempt to connect you to your previous consultant. If they aren't available, you'll be connected to the next available consultant with the same speciality knowledge. The new consultant will have full visibility of your previous chat history, so you don't need to repeat information.

If you don’t respond within 3 – 5 minutes, your chat will become inactive. You’ll still have access to this chat, and can resume the chat by sending a message. This will connect you to your previous consultant or the next available consultant. If you reply outside of chat support hours, a consultant will respond when they become available during chat hours.

If you don’t respond to us within 24 hours, your chat will end automatically. If your chat ends, you’ll need to start a new chat with us.

To start a chat:

1. Log in to Adviser Online
2. Select the Chat with us button in the bottom right of your screen
3. Select the topic most relevant to your query using the pre-chat form
4. Type and send your message while you wait to connect to a consultant. You don’t need to be connected to a consultant before sending messages. Select the Enter or Return key to send your message.
5. While you are connecting, you’ll see an estimated wait time. This is just an estimate based on your position in the queue and the average duration of earlier chats. It won’t dynamically increase or decrease.

You can also start a chat from the Manage payments page or from Request Centre:

1. Log in to Adviser Online
2. Select Requests or hover over Payments and click Manage payments in the side navigation panel
3. Select the Actions menu (three vertical dots) on the request row or Actions menu on the payment row
4. Select Chat about this
5. Type and send your message while you wait to connect to a consultant. You don’t need to be connected to a consultant before sending messages. Select the Enter or Return key to send your message
6. Once connected to a consultant, they’ll be able to see the request ID or payment ID you’d like to chat about.

Browser notifications are pop-up messages that are displayed in your browser. These notifications will appear when you’re in a chat with a consultant and you receive a new message from them.

The pop-up message will only be presented if you navigate away from the Adviser Online tab but stay in the same browser. Enabling browser notifications will help ensure you don’t miss any new messages in chat.

Find out how to:

• enable browser notifications
• turn off browser notifications

If you’ve enabled browser notifications for Adviser Online but you’re still not receiving notifications, confirm you’ve allowed notifications in your device’s system settings for the browser application.

For example, you may have allowed notifications for websites you use, but notifications have not been enabled for the browser application in your device’s settings.

To allow notifications in your device’s settings:

1. Open your device’s System Settings (MacOS) or Windows Settings (Windows)
2. Navigate to Notifications in the settings sidebar (MacOS) or Systems > Notifications in the settings sidebar (Windows)
   1. Toggle on Notifications (Windows only)
3. Select your browser application (for example Google Chrome) from the list of applications under Application Notifications (MacOS) or Notifications from apps (Windows)
4. Toggle and switch to the ‘on’ position for notifications for your selected browser application, and
   1. Select Banners or Alerts, based on your preference (MacOS)
   2. Adjust specific notifications settings to your preference (Windows).

If you use multiple screen displays, such as a laptop device and monitor, your browser notifications will only appear on the screen selected as your main display. 

You can adjust your display preferences in your device’s settings. To change your main display:

1. Open System Settings (MacOS) or Window Settings (Windows)
2. Select Displays > Arrange (MacOS) or System > Display (Windows)
   1. Right click your preferred screen to be your main display and select main display from the pop-up list (MacOS) OR
   2. Select your preferred screen to be your main display and then check the box that says, “Make this my main display” (Windows).

You can minimise the Adviser Online chat button when you’re not chatting with us by clicking on the X. To expand it again, click on the minimised chat icon.

When you’re in a chat, you can minimise the chat window while you wait for a response from the consultant. Click on the down arrow in the chat header to minimise the chat window

The chat window will minimise and remain at the bottom right of your Adviser Online screen. If you receive a new message while the chat is minimised, a red icon with the number of new messages received will appear on the minimised chat header. Click anywhere on the chat header to expand the chat window to see the new messages received from the consultant.

Either you or the consultant you’re chatting with can end the chat once your conversation has finished. The chat transcript will be available for you to download, once the chat has ended.

To end a chat:

1. Select the X icon at the top right-hand side of the chat window header. You’ll be asked to confirm you would like to end the chat before it is ended.
2. Select End chat to end the chat, or Cancel to return to the chat.

If the consultant ends the chat, you’ll be notified the chat has ended. You’ll remain in your chat and will be able to scroll to through the chat activity. If you’d like to download the chat transcript, simple select the X icon at the top right-hand side of the chat window header.

Consultants will make every effort to answer all questions asked in the chat. They won’t end your chat unless you confirm your query has been resolved or you’re happy for the chat to be ended.

Your chat will automatically end if you do not respond to us within 24 hours. If your chat does end, you’ll see a page confirming the chat has ended, and you’ll be able to download the chat transcript.

If you are waiting for a reply from your chat consultant, your chat will not end.

 To find out when your chat will end automatically, see the table below: