Legal & Terms of Use

Complaints

We hope that you are happy with the service we provide. If at any stage you are unhappy with the service, have concerns or wish to make a complaint then firstly we would like to apologise and let you know that we will do all we can to deal with your concerns.

As a starting point we would ask that you first please tell the person handling your matter straight away about the nature of your concern.  We understand that this is a difficult time for our clients and their family in having to deal with such a complete and unexpected changes to their lives on so many levels. Research has universally pointed to issues over communication as the primary underlying cause of why clients feel unhappy about legal services.  This has also been our experience and we would wish to put this right as soon as possible and to understand what we can do to help support you through this time whilst we are representing you.  It is for this reason that we recommend speaking to the person who is applying our claim as soon as possible and not delay as this may result in the situation worsening.

If you do not feel comfortable speaking with the individual handling your claim then you can contact our complaints manager directly to discuss your concerns.  We happily invite you to do so even if you feel slightly unhappy but are not at the stage where you wish to raise a formal complaint procedure.  We wish to make this as easy as possible for you.  If the person handling your claim (or the complains manager) cannot promptly resolve your concerns then it will be dealt with as a formal complaint under our complaints policy (set out below). This process involves an investigation of the concerns by a senior member of our firm. We will then write to you within 8 weeks setting out our final response to the complaint and how you can pursue you concerns further if you do not agree with our proposed resolution / outcome.

You also have the right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman about our service you remain dissatisfied. The Ombudsman would generally expect clients to follow a firm’s internal complaints procedure first. You must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint from us. From 1 April 2023, the Legal Ombudsman also expects complaints to be made to them within 1 year of the date of the act or omission about which you are concerned or within 1 year of you realising (or should have realised) there was a concern. You can find further information about the Ombudsman on the website www.legalombudsman.org.uk. You can write to the Ombudsman at Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6167 , Slough, SL1 0EH or by email on enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk or call on 0300 555 0333 between 9am and 5pm.

Alternative complaints and dispute resolution bodies do also exist (such as Ombudsman Services, ProMediate and Small Claims Mediation) which are competent to deal with complaints about legal services if we both agree to use such a scheme. If we agree to use such a scheme we will inform you when notifying you of our final response to your complaint.

Please note that the Legal Ombudsman is there to deal with concerns about the level of service which a client has received. Where there are more serious concerns that a solicitor or solicitor’s firm have been involved in professional misconduct then reports can also be made to the SRA, the regulator of solicitors and solicitor firms. This could be for quite unusual and serious acts of misconduct such as dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic. Obviously, we do not anticipate any such problems arising and would ask that you notify the matter supervisor straight away if you have any such concerns. You can find out more about the SRA and view the professional rules which apply to us on the SRA website: www.sra.org.uk.  You can report a solicitor or firm of solicitors to the SRA via their website at: www.sra.org.uk/consumers/problems/report-solicitor/

If we have made a contract with you by electronic means (website, email or electronic signature etc) you may be entitled to use an EU online dispute resolution service to assist you with any dispute you may have with us in relation to the contract.  This service can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/odr

The Complaint procedure

The client complaint procedure is set out below.

We are committed to providing a quality service to our clients.   We also value feedback from clients greatly because it helps us to continually improve our service. If you do not feel that you are receiving excellent client service or that something could be improved, please do tell us about it.  If we have fallen short of the high standards which we have set for ourselves then we would like the opportunity to put it right.

What do I do if I have feedback or a complaint?

At first it would be helpful if you could discuss any feedback or concerns which you have about our service or how it might be improved with the lawyer dealing with your matter.  If the lawyer dealing cannot resolve your concern informally, or if the issue is of such a serious nature that you do not feel comfortable raising it with your lawyer, then you may discuss this with our complaints partner as a complaint under this policy.

How do I raise a complaint under this policy?

It would help us if you could email Philip Coulthurst (Director) (philip@coulthursts.co.uk) with:

• why you feel dissatisfied with the service which you have received;
• how you would prefer to be contacted about your complaint;
• if there is anything in particular which you would like us to do to resolve your complaint.

If you would prefer not to email details of your complaint in this way then please call to discuss the best way to allow us to get an understanding of your concerns.

What happens after I have made a complaint under this policy?

We will:

• send an acknowledgement of your complaint within 7 days of receiving it;
• log your complaint on our central complaints register;
• investigate the concerns and arrange a discussion with you to try to agree how to resolve the issues within 21 days of receiving your complaint;
• write to you within 28 days of receiving your complaint to confirm the outcome of this.

In exceptional circumstances it may be necessary to extend these timescales but we will try to agree any variations with you first. If you remain unsatisfied after 8 weeks at the latest we will always ensure that you are reminded at that time of how to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman if you are eligible to do so.

What might the outcome of my complaint be?

We very much regret any dissatisfaction which our clients experience and will not hesitate to apologise to you where our service has fallen below our high standards.  We may also agree that certain steps will be taken to improve your situation and to ensure that any problems experienced will not reoccur.

What if I remain unsatisfied?

If you remain dissatisfied you may be entitled to complain to the Legal Ombudsman about our service. This service is not available to all clients, however, such as large businesses. The Ombudsman would generally expect clients to follow a firm’s internal complaints procedure first.  You can find further information about the Ombudsman on the website www.legalombudsman.org.uk. You can write to the Ombudsman at Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ or by email on enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk or call on 0300 555 0333.  If you wish to raise a complaint with the Ombudsman then you should not delay bringing it to their attention once our own complaints process has concluded as there are some time limits on when this must be done.   You must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint from us. From 1 April 2023, the Legal Ombudsman also expects complaints to be made to them within 1 year of the date of the act or omission about which you are concerned or within 1 year of you realising (or should have realised) there was a concern.

Disclaimer and Terms of Use

The following terms, contitions and disclaimers govern the permitted use of our website.  By using our website you accept these terms in full.   If you do not agree to these terms in full you must not use our website.

The material and information contained in this website, including within all news items and blogs, are for general information purposes and do not constitute legal advice.  Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information on this website; however, Coulthursts does not accept responsibility for any damage or loss which may arise from reliance upon any information contained on this website. You should always seek specific legal advice upon your case or any legal query you may have.Likewise, information related to brain injuries or other injuries or conditions is for information purposes and does not constitute medical advice; you should always consult a medical professional.

In relation to any blogs or articles written by individuals (including guests) any opinions or statements are the authors’ and production here does not imply that Coulthursts agrees or endorses any such opinions or statements. Again, such blogs are for information purposes and never constitute legal or medical advice.

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