Dilwyns Solicitors

Complaints Handling Policy

 

Our Complaints Policy

We are committed to providing a high-quality legal service to all our clients.  When something goes wrong, we need you to tell us about it.  This will help us to improve our standards. If you have a complaint, please contact us in writing with the details.

What will happen next? 

1. We will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint within three days of receiving it, enclosing a copy of this procedure.

2. We will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to our client care partner, Gareth Jones, who will review your matter file and speak to the member of staff who acted for you. If the complaint is about Gareth Jones, then the client care partner for the purposes of the complaint will be Andrew Philip Morgan.

3. Gareth Jones will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint.  He will do this within 14 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter.

4. Within three days of the meeting, Gareth Jones will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions he has agreed with you.

5. If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, Gareth Jones will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including his suggestions for resolving the matter, within 21 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter. 

6. At this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you should contact us again and we will arrange for Andrew Philip Morgan or someone unconnected with the matter at the firm to review the decision.

7.We will write to you within 14 days of receiving your request for a review, confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons. 

8. If you are still not satisfied, you can then contact the Legal Ombudsman (LEO) at PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ or via email on enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk about your complaint.  Any complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must usually be made within six months of the date of our final decision on your complaint but for further information, you should contact the Legal Ombudsman on 0300 555 0333 

If we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know and explain why.

9. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) can help you 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, a disability or other characteristic.

You can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

If you are unhappy about how the LEO or SRA have dealt with your complaint you can complain to the Legal Services Ombudsman (LSO), who is responsible for dealing with complaints about legal professional bodies. The address for the Legal Services Ombudsman is:

Legal Services Ombudsman

3rd Floor Sunlight House

Quay Street Manchester

M3 3JZ

Helpline: 0845 601 0794

E-mail: lso@olso.gsi.gov.uk

In addition to directing a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman (LEO) you will be able to refer your dispute for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). There are three Institutions available to deal with disputes in the legal services sector, namely the Ombudsman Services, ProMediate and Small Claims Mediation.  If required, we will provide contact details for those mediation services.



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