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Complaints Procedure

The firm 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 maintain and improve our standards.

Our complaints procedure

If you have a complaint, please contact Helen Holmes with the details. Helen Holmes will signpost your complaint to the relevant Complaints Investigator which is determined by case type.

What will happen next?

  1. We will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint, where necessary asking you to confirm or explain the details.  We will tell you who will be dealing with your complaint and also provide you with the contact details of the Legal Ombudsman.  You can expect to receive our letter within 5 working days of receiving your complaint.
  2. We will open a file for your complaint and record it in our central register.  We will do this within 5 working days of receiving your complaint.
  3. Helen Holmes or an alternative investigator will then investigate your complaint, which will normally involve examining your file and speaking with the person in the firm who acted for you. She will do this within 28 working days.
  4. If you would like to have a meeting to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint, we will arrange this within 5 working days of your request.  Within 5 working days of the meeting, your investigator will write to you to confirm what took place and if any solutions have been agreed with you.
  5. If you do not want a meeting, or if it is not possible for any reason, your investigator will send you a detailed response to your complaint, including suggestions for resolving the matter.
  6. At this stage, if you remain dissatisfied, you can let us know.  We will arrange to review the decision internally.
  7. We will let you know the result of this review within 10 working days of its conclusion.  At this stage your investigator will write to you confirming the firm’s final position on your complaint.
  8. If you are still not satisfied with the firm’s decision at the conclusion of the complaints procedure you may refer the matter to the Legal Ombudsman. Their address is PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ. You can also reach them on 0300 555 0333 or via email at [email protected]. Their website is at www.legalombudsman.org.uk.  There is a time limit for referring the matter to the Legal Ombudsman which is generally 6 months from the end of our firm’s complaint procedure and no later than 12 months from when the matter first occurred.

If we have to change any of the timescales above, we will let you know and explain why.