Birkett & Co

Complaints Procedure

We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service we have provided then you should inform us immediately so that we can do our best to resolve the problem.

In the first instance it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your case to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues at this stage. If you would like to make a formal complaint, then our full complaints procedure is as follows.

Our Complaints Policy

Birkett & Co Solicitors is 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.

Our Complaints Procedure

If you have a concern or a complaint, please contact us as soon as you are aware of the problem so this can be addressed. The person to be contacted is Mrs Jacqueline Birkett who is the Complaints Officer at this firm. You may contact Mrs. Birkett by telephone: 01706 824707 or by email to jbirkett@birkettandcosolicitors.co.uk or by post to our office.

What will happen next?

  1. We will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint within five days of our receiving the complaint enclosing a copy of this procedure. If you have any specific requirements in relation to this policy then please let us know and we will be happy to help.
  2. We will then investigate your complaint. This will normally involve passing your complaint to the Complaints Officer, Mrs Birkett, who will review your matter file and speak to the member of staff who is concerned, if applicable.
  3. Mrs Birkett will then invite you to a meeting to discuss and, it is hoped, resolve your complaint. She will do this within 14 days of sending you the acknowledgement letter.
  4. Within three days of the meeting, Mrs Birkett will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions she has agreed with you.
  5. If you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, Mrs Birkett will send you a detailed written reply to your complaint, including her 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 to explain why you remain unhappy with our response and we will review your comments.
  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 we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know in writing and explain why.

Making a complaint will not affect how we handle your case.

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 (SRA) (/consumers/problems/report-solicitor.page).

What to do if we cannot resolve your complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.

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 make take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

  • within 6 months of receiving a final response to your complaint

and no later than:

  • one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or 
  • one year from the date when the complainant should have realised that there was cause for complaint.

If you would like more information from the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them.

Contact details

Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm

Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ