Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Ratcliff Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Ratcliff is committed to providing reliable, professional and courteous gardening services. We recognise that, on occasion, things may not go as planned. This Complaints Procedure explains how you can raise a concern, how we will deal with it, and what you can expect from us at each stage.

1. Our commitment to you

We aim to resolve all complaints quickly, fairly and transparently. When you raise a concern about our gardening or maintenance work, we will take it seriously, treat you with respect, and use your feedback to improve our services. We will keep your information confidential and only share it with team members who need it to investigate and resolve your complaint.

2. What counts as a complaint

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about the service you have received from Gardeners Ratcliff. This may include, for example, concerns about the quality of gardening work, missed appointments, conduct of our team members, how your booking was handled, or how we communicated with you.

If you are unsure whether your issue counts as a complaint, you can still contact us to discuss it. We will let you know whether we can resolve it informally or whether it should follow the formal procedure.

3. Informal resolution

In many cases, issues can be resolved quickly by speaking directly with the gardener attending your property or with our office staff. Where possible, we encourage you to raise any concern as soon as it arises so that we can put things right without delay.

At this informal stage, we will try to understand what has happened, offer an explanation, and agree practical steps to resolve the matter. If you are satisfied with the outcome, the complaint will be considered closed. If you remain unhappy, you can make a formal complaint as set out below.

4. How to make a formal complaint

If your concern cannot be resolved informally, or you prefer to follow a more structured process, you can make a formal complaint in writing. When doing so, please provide the following information so that we can investigate thoroughly:

• Your full name
• The address where the gardening service was carried out
• Dates and times of the relevant visit or communication
• A clear description of what went wrong
• How you would like us to put things right

Please send your written complaint to our office. If you require help to set out your complaint in writing, we will take reasonable steps to assist you.

5. Acknowledgement and timescales

Once we receive your formal complaint, we will acknowledge it in writing. We aim to do this within five working days. The acknowledgement will confirm that we have received your complaint, outline the next steps, and give an estimated timeframe for our investigation and response.

We aim to provide a full written response within twenty working days of acknowledging your complaint. If, for any reason, we need more time, we will let you know, explain why there is a delay, and provide a revised timescale.

6. Investigation process

Your complaint will be reviewed by a senior member of the Gardeners Ratcliff team who was not directly involved in the issue wherever possible. The investigation may include:

• Reviewing your booking details and service records
• Speaking with the gardeners or staff involved
• Examining photographs, job notes or other relevant evidence
• Visiting the property if this is necessary and agreed with you

We will consider all the information carefully and aim to reach a fair and balanced conclusion based on the facts available.

7. Our response and possible outcomes

When our investigation is complete, we will send you a written response setting out:

• A summary of your complaint
• The steps we took to investigate
• Our findings and decision
• Any actions we will take to resolve the issue

Depending on the circumstances, possible outcomes may include an explanation or apology, additional or remedial gardening work, changes to our internal processes, or other appropriate remedies. We will clearly explain our reasoning and how we arrived at our decision.

8. If you remain dissatisfied

If you are not satisfied with our response, you should contact us again and explain why you remain unhappy. Where possible, your concerns will be reviewed by a different senior member of the team, who will consider whether the investigation and outcome were fair and reasonable.

We will provide a further written reply, normally within ten working days. This review will represent our final position on the matter.

9. Customer responsibilities

To help us manage complaints efficiently, we ask that you provide accurate information, respond to any questions we may have, and allow reasonable access to the property where this is needed to assess the gardening work. We also ask that all communication with our staff remains polite and respectful.

10. Using complaints to improve our service

Customer feedback, including complaints, is an important part of how Gardeners Ratcliff monitors and improves its services. We regularly review complaints to identify patterns, training needs and opportunities to enhance the quality, reliability and safety of our gardening work across the area we serve.

By following this Complaints Procedure, we aim to resolve issues constructively and maintain the high standards that our customers expect from Gardeners Ratcliff.