How we handle formal complaints
We pride ourselves on providing an excellent service, but even in the best run businesses, mistakes, delays and misunderstandings can happen.
If something has gone wrong, please tell us about it so we can put things right and improve what we do in the future. Please tell us about any problems as soon as they arise, so we have the best chance of fixing them.
You should not feel obliged to use this formal complaints procedure – you may tell us about a problem informally and we will do our best to put things right – but if you do find yourself in the position of wishing to raise a formal complaint with us then please follow the steps below.
We will never charge you for the time it takes us to handle your complaint.
How to complain
You can make a complaint either in writing or by telephone by contacting the following people:
Afqar Dean, telephone: 020 3633 6827,
In writing: Afqar Dean, 6 Bevis Marks, London EC3A 7BA, or
by email:
Please tell us who or what the complaint is about and when the problem happened or when the problem started if it is still ongoing, and how you would like us to communicate with you (by telephone, letter or email).
What happens next
We will acknowledge your complaint in writing. We will try to do this within 14 business days.
We will look into the details of your complaint and consider what we need to do to put things right, which might include:
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explaining what we think happened;
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apologising to you;
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repeating work, or parts of work, we did for you;
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reviewing our procedures so we do not repeat a mistake;
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reducing our fees;
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compensating you for any loss we have caused you to suffer.
Once we have investigated your complaint we will reply to you. We will do this within eight weeks of when you first complained to us, though we will always try and respond to your complaint much sooner. If you have asked us to contact you by telephone we will do so but we will also write to you.
The Legal Ombudsman
If we have been unable to put things right, or we have not resolved your complaint within eight weeks, then you can have the complaint independently looked at by the Legal Ombudsman. The Legal Ombudsman investigates problems about poor service from lawyers.
Before accepting a complaint for investigation the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:
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within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint; and
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no more than one year from the date of the act/omission giving rise to the complaint; or
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no more than one year from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
The Legal Ombudsman can be contacted using the following details:
Address: PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ Telephone: 03005550333
Email:
The Costs Lawyer Standards Board (CLSB)
The majority of the individual Costs Lawyers who work for us are regulated by the CLSB and the CLSB can investigate complaints about those Costs Lawyers’ professional conduct. If you wish to complain about a Costs Lawyer’s conduct, you should contact the CLSB promptly.
The CLSB will consider complaints made within 12 months of the date on which the matters giving rise to the complaint occurred or the date on which the complainant first became aware that they had grounds for the complaint. This period can be extended in exceptional circumstances. The CLSB will usually expect you to give us a chance to resolve your complaint first.
The CLSB can be contacted using the following details:
Address: Centurion House, 129 Deansgate, Manchester, M3 3WR Telephone: 01612147904
Email:
Website: www.clsb.info
