What happens when you make a complaint?
When you let us know that you have had a problem with our service, we will always try to fix things straight away. If we can resolve things for you within 24 hours, we will log your issue with a unique reference number as a “quick fix” issue and you will not need to use the formal complaints process. This would apply, for example, where we have missed an appointment with you and we make a new arrangement that suits you. Where we do this you will still get a letter containing your unique reference number to confirm that you experienced a problem, reported it to us and that we believe it has been resolved. In this way, we can act quickly and be sure that you are happy that the issue is sorted out.
When we can’t solve the problem immediately we will move into our formal complaints process. We want you to know that you can be assisted by a friend or relative at any point in the process if this helps you to feel more confident about making your complaint.
Making a complaint
If you make a formal complaint, one of our Customer Advisors will:
° Contact you to discuss your complaint
° Respond to you in five working days by email or letter to let you know what we can do
° Confirm with you that you are happy with the proposed action to resolve or respond to your complaint
If your complaint is about a Customer Advisor, a manager will respond to you.
If you are not happy with our response we will arrange a review by the Head of Service. All that you have to do is to let us know why you are unhappy with the action taken, and what you want us to do. You should notify either the person who dealt with your complaint or contact us by email at appeal@rhp.org.uk or by telephoning the Customer Contact Centre on 0800 0322 433.
Appeal
At Appeal we will:
° Contact you to discuss the details of your complaint
° Write to you within five working days by email or letter to let you know whether we support the action / response given at the first stage or setting out any new or additional proposals
° Let you know if the review of your complaint is going to take longer than this and agree a new target date for our response
° Ask you to confirm that you are happy with our proposed action or response
We will then close your complaint, making sure that we have taken steps to carry out any agreed actions.
At the Appeal stage of the process we will only normally be able to consider the complaint (and any directly associated matters) that you raised at the first stage. If there are new issues, these will be considered as a separate complaint.
If you are not happy with our response at the Appeal stage
We hope that we will be able to resolve any problem for you at an early stage. If you remain unhappy you can refer your complaint to the Housing Ombudsman Service.
The Housing Ombudsman Service
If you have been through our complaints process and you still feel that your complaint has not been dealt with properly, you can contact the Housing Ombudsman Service. The Housing Ombudsman will not be able to consider your complaint unless you have been through both stages of our process.
The Ombudsman Service is an independent body which deals with disputes between registered landlords and their customers. You can contact the service directly or through the information leaflets and forms available in our offices.
You can write to the Housing Ombudsman Service at:
Housing Ombudsman Service
81 Aldwych
London
WC2B 4HN
Making sure our complaints process works well
We want to make sure that all our customers are heard when they have a problem and that we treat people fairly and with respect whenever they are unhappy with our service.
We will contact you one month after your complaint has been dealt with, asking you how you have been treated. It is important for us to find out about your experience so that we can learn and improve.
Help is at Hand!
If you need any help using our complaints process, please contact our Customer Contact Centre on 0800 0322 433.