Help us to get things right – our complaints procedure at rhw
rhw solicitors LLP works hard to deliver the best possible service to its clients. If at any time you feel that we are failing to do so we need to know so that we can put matters right as soon as possible. This will help us to improve our standards.
If you cannot resolve the complaint informally with the lawyer representing you, or you prefer not to raise the issue with them, please contact Bill Hatton, the person at the firm responsible for complaints handling.
What we need to know
In order to understand and respond effectively to your complaint we need to know as much as possible about the reasons behind it. Please set out, preferably in writing (letter or email):
- What your complaint is about
- The names of people you are unhappy with
- The dates and time involved
- What you feel has gone wrong
- What you feel we should do to put matters right
- What loss you believe you have suffered
What we will do
We will acknowledge your complaint as quickly as possible and aim to do so within two working days.
We will record your complaint in our central register and open a separate file. We will then start to investigate your complaint. This will normally involve the following steps:
- Bill Hatton will ask the member of staff who acted for you to respond to him regarding your complaint, normally within five working days.
- He will then examine their reply and the information in your complaint file, and, where necessary, he will also speak to them. This will take up to 10 working days from receiving their reply and the file.
- You will then receive a detailed written reply to your complaint, usually within 15 working days from the date of receipt of your letter of complaint. If the reply is likely to take longer than 15 working days we will normally inform you of the proposed timescale for a detailed reply.
- We will also advise you that you have the right to refer the matter to the Legal Ombudsman or the Solicitors Regulation Authority
You will not be charged for the time spent by us investigating and responding to your complaints.
Bill Hatton can be contacted on or at
rhw Solicitors, Parallel House, 32 London Road, Guildford GU1 2AB
You can contact the Solicitors Regulation Authority at https://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/problems/report-solicitor/ or refer the matter to the Legal Ombudsman via www.legalombudsman.org.uk . You can write to the Legal Ombudsman at
PO Box 6806
Wolverhampton
WV1 9WJ
or by telephone on 0300 5550333.
Before they will investigate a complaint, the Legal Ombudsman will require the firm’s internal Complaints Procedure to have been exhausted.
If you are not satisfied with our response or if we have taken over 8 weeks to reply or not replied at all you can then contact the Legal Ombudsman. You must usually refer your complaint within six months from our final written response to your complaint and within six years of the act or omission about which you are complaining (or within three years of you becoming aware of it). There are exceptions and additional detail to these basic time limits and in fact not all clients are eligible to have recourse to the Legal Ombudsman.