Complaints Procedure

Introduction

If you are dissatisfied with the service we have provided then you have the right to complain. The Legal Ombudsman service has been operational since October 6th, 2010 and is ultimately responsible for ensuring that complaints are dealt with appropriately. However, before you contact the Legal Ombudsman you must first register an official complaint with us. The Legal Ombudsman expects you to give us 8 weeks to try to resolve the matter. If for any reason we are unable to resolve the problem between us within that timeframe, then our clients are advised that they may ask the Legal Ombudsman to consider the complaint. For more information on how the Legal Ombudsman works please  visit the Legal Ombudsman website.

Timescales

Step One:

If you wish to complain, you should contact Sanjeev Shivalkar who is the Complaints Handling Representative in our company, letting him know the full nature of the problem. He can be contacted by email sanjeev.shivalkar@faradayssolicitors.co.uk phone on 0207 281 1001 or post at 142 Seven Sisters Road, Finsbury Park, London, N7 7NS.

Step Two:

Our Complaints Handling Representative will write to you acknowledging the complaint within five working days. In this letter, we shall confirm what happens next. 

Step Three:

Our complaints Handling Representative shall then investigate the matter within ten working days of acknowledging receipt of the complaint. If, for some reason, the matter cannot be investigated in this timeframe, then we will write to you notifying you of the reason why and giving a revised timescale. Once the investigation has been completed, you will be invited to a meeting to discuss the issue and hopefully resolve the complaint. This could be a meeting, video conference call or telephone call and the client's preference will be taken into account as well as how the matter may be dealt with. This process of engagement will take place within ten working days of our concluding the investigation of the matter. Following the meeting or call, our Complaints Handling Representative shall write to you within five working days of the meeting to confirm the discussion and the solution agreed upon.

Step Four:

If you do not want to attend such a meeting (or the meeting is not necessary), the Complaints Handling Representative will send a detailed, written response , including the proposed solution within fifteen working days of our concluding the investigation of the matter.  

Step Five:

If you are satisfied with our response following the above steps, that will be the end of the matter. However, if you are not satisfied you should contact our Pan Symeou who is the Senior Director and he will review the decision within ten  days of receiving the request with confirmation of the company's final position in relation to the complaint, outlining the reasons and any final redress that is offered.

Step Six: Other avenues

You must always complain to us first. In most cases you will not be able to take the complaint further without allowing us the opportunity to put things right.  

 Legal Ombudsman

You must  give us 8 weeks to try to resolve your complaint before contacting the Legal Ombudsman. A complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must normally be made within six months of you having received a final written response from us about the complaint. Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman must usually be made within one year of the act or omission about which you are complaining occurred; or within one  year from when you should have known about or become aware that there were grounds for complaint.   

  • In addition to the Legal Ombudsman, several other complaints bodies exist which are also able to deal with complaints about legal services - these are: Ombudsman Services, ProMediate, Small Claims Mediation and the European Online Dispute Resolution platform. Information about these alternatives can be found at:
  • www.ombudsman-services.org
  • www.promediate.co.uk
  • ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr/

Solicitors Regulation Authority

If you think a solicitor might be dishonest or you have concerns about their ethics or integrity, you also have the right to notify our regulator, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). There are no time limits for making a report but there are limits on what the SRA will consider. Please note that the SRA is not able to deal with issues of poor service (complaints of this nature should instead be referred to the Legal Ombudsman). For further information about the SRA's role, please contact the SRA or visit: https://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/problems/report-solicitor.page#report