Our Complaints Policy and Procedure
We are committed to providing a high quality legal service to all our clients. When something goes wrong, our complaints policy and procedure lays out what you can do to tell us about it. This will help us to put matters right where appropriate and improve our standards.
In the first instance, it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your case to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues. If you would like to make a formal complaint, then our full complaints procedure is detailed below. Please be assured that making a complaint will not negatively affect how we handle your case.
If the person in charge of your case is not able to resolve the issues, or you would prefer to raise the matter with our Complaints Partner yourself, please contact Julie Cockburn who is based at our Churston Office. The telephone number 01803 845191 or you can email at enquiries@rogerrichards.co.uk.
If we cannot resolve your complaint, the Legal Ombudsman can help and details of how to contact the Ombudsman are included within our Complaints Procedure below.
You can also contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money, or treating you unfairly because of your age, disability or other characteristic. Further information about how to raise concerns with the SRA can be found on their website www.sra.org.uk/problems/report-solicitor.
Our Complaints Procedure
- We will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint within five working days of receiving it, enclosing a copy of this procedure
- Julie Cockburn will then investigate your complaint, examining the relevant file and speaking with members of staff as appropriate.
- If appropriate, Julie Cockburn will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and, we hope, resolve your complaint. She will be in a position to do this no longer than twenty eight days after of sending the acknowledgement letter to you.
- Within three days of that discussion Julie Cockburn will write to you to confirm what took place and any suggestions we have made or solutions that she has agreed with you.
- If you would prefer not to meet, or if it is not practical or appropriate, or if we cannot arrange it within an acceptable timescale, Julie Cockburn will write fully to you setting out her views on the situation and any suggestions we may have to resolve it. She should be in a position to do this within 10 days of your request for a written response.
- At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, please let Julie Cockburn know. We will then arrange for another partner in the firm who has not been involved in your complaint to review our position.
- We will write to you again within fourteen days of receiving your request for a review. We will set out our final position on your complaint and explain our reasons.
- If you are still not satisfied, you can contact the Legal Ombudsman at PO Box 6806 Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ about your complaint. Any complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must usually be made within six months of the date of our final written response on your complaint or within one year from the date when you should have known about the complaint.
For further information, you should contact the Legal Ombudsman on 0300 555 0333 or enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk.
