Windsor

 

Complaints Procedure

We are committed to providing our clients with high quality legal advice and a friendly and efficient service. If you are unhappy about any aspect of our service, you should first raise the issue with the person with primary responsibility for your matter or Elaine Gates. A copy of our Complaints Procedure is set out below. If you are not satisfied with our handling of your complaint, you can ask for your complaint to be dealt with by the Legal Ombudsman. You can refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within either one year of the problem happening; or one year from when you found out about it.

How to complain to your service provider | Legal Ombudsman

You can make a claim if you have suffered a loss that was caused by

  • dishonesty
  • fraud
  • negligence
  • failure to account for money received
of a practice regulated by the CLC or of one of their employees. Each case is considered on its merits. Typically, the CLC will not respond to claims relating to investment transactions.

The CLC have absolute discretion to decide whether to make any payment out of the Fund –nobody has a legally enforceable right to a grant.

It should be noted that the Compensation Fund is a fund of last resort – before the CLC accept your claim, they may require you to recover your losses by all other means available, such as by making an insurance claim or by taking court action. The CLC will not consider making a payment unless it is satisfied that a person has taken all necessary and appropriate steps.

CLC – The Specialist Property Law Regulator

Please note, the compensation fund is a back-up when redress is not available by other means

If you have any complaint about the way in which your matter has been dealt with this is the procedure which will be followed:

1. A complaint is an oral or written expression of dissatisfaction which alleges that the complainant has suffered (or may suffer) financial loss, distress, inconvenience, or detriment

2. We aim to resolve any complaint you have about the service we have given you as quickly as possible. If you have a complaint, please contact Elaine Gates, in writing, at Index House St George's Lane Ascot SL5 7ET. Alternatively please contact us by telephone on 01344 851200.

3. Once we have received your complaint, we will write to you within 7 days to explain how your complaint will be investigated if a complete response to your complaint has not been made by that time. You will be told the latest date by which a complete answer will be given to your complaint (this should be not more than 28 days after we received your complaint). If you have made the complaint verbally - either at a meeting or on the telephone - we will set out in our full response our understanding of the nature of your complaint

4. The assessment of the complaint will be based upon a sufficient and fair investigation. We will explain in writing our findings and where the complaint is upheld will offer remedial action or redress. This will be actioned promptly.

5. If you are dissatisfied with the way your complaint is handled please let us know in writing and we shall conduct a separate review of your complaint.  You will be told about the conclusion of this review within 28 days.

6. If after following the review process you remain dissatisfied with any aspect of our handling of your complaint, you may contact directly the Legal Ombudsman to ask them to consider the complaint further.  The contact details are:Tel no: 0300 555 0333

Email:enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Website: http://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/

Legal Ombudsman

PO Box 6167

Slough

SL1 0EH

Unless it agrees there are good reasons not to do so, the Legal Ombudsman will expect you to allow us to consider and respond to your complaint in accordance with the procedure set out above in the first instance. You can refer your complaint up to 6 months after you have received our final written response to your complaint. You can also use the Ombudsman service if we have not resolved your complaint within 8 weeks of us receiving it.   The Ombudsman deals with service-related complaints; any conduct related complaints will be referred to the Council for Licensed Conveyancers.

7. Alternative complaints bodies (such as ProMediate) exist which are competent to deal with complaints about legal services should both you and our Firm wish to use such a scheme.

8. We agree to use Promediate.

9. Redress offers that are accepted will be actioned within 28 days.

10. If you make a valid claim against us for a loss arising out of work for which we are legally responsible, and we are unable to meet our liability in full, you may be entitled to claim from the Compensation Fund administered by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (from whom details can be obtained