Continuing the almost uninterrupted trend of decades, the use of electronic means (which encompasses the use of electronic mail and the complaint form available on the institutional site) has grown as a preferred means of contact for the submission of a complaint to the Ombudsman, corresponding in 2016 to 70% of the total (66% in 2015, a year in which it has fallen by one percentage point compared to the previous year). In turn, postal use decreased by four percentage points (26% in 2016 compared to 30% in 2015). Regarding the oral presentation of complaints, there was a decrease of one percentage point, which corresponds in absolute terms, to a decrease from 350 to 282 cases compared to the year 2015. It should also be noted that there has been a drop in the number of complaints presented orally in one percentage point, which corresponds, in absolute terms, to a decrease from 350 to 282 cases, in line with the trend observed in previous years. Table 3 Number of pending cases Pending cases from 2011 Pending cases from 2012 Pending cases from 2013 Pending cases from 2014 Pending cases from 2015 Total of cases prior to 2016 Cases opened in 2016 Past year cases reopened in 2016 Total pending cases 2 31 140 652 2711 3536 6883 0 10 419 As shown in the above table, in 2016, the volume of procedures under investigation was only slightly lower than in 2015, down from only 90 units, from 10 509 to 10 419. This figure covers the procedures opened in the year itself and the ones that transited from previous years. Table 4 Number of cases closed and reclosed Closed cases from 2016 2 Closed cases from 2012 15 Closed cases from 2013 Closed cases from 2014 81 424 Closed cases from 2015 2049 | 21