Formal complaints procedure

Ad Hoc strives to maintain and enhance its reputation of providing a high quality service to clients, Property Guardians and members of the public.

We are committed to being responsive to your needs and concerns and, where there is cause to raise a complaint, we aim to resolve this in an efficient, fair and structured way. We value complaints and use information learnt from them to help us improve the services we offer.

This policy has been designed to provide guidance on the manner in which Ad Hoc receives and handles your complaint. The objective is to ensure:

• You are aware of our complaints & handling process;
  
• Both you and our staff understand and adhere to our complaints & handling process;
  
• Your complaint is considered on its own facts and merits;
  
• Your complaint is investigated objectively with a balanced view of all information or evidence;
  
• You are kept informed as to the progress of your complaint and the expected timeframe for resolution.
  
  

What is a complaint?

We regard a complaint as an expression of dissatisfaction with the standard of service received from Ad Hoc, or one of our contractors, which requires us to respond or take action.

What you can complain about?

You can complain about matters such as:

• The quality of the service Ad Hoc has provided;
• Ad Hoc’s failure to provide a service;
  
• Unfair treatment or inappropriate behaviour by an Ad Hoc staff member;
  
• Dissatisfaction with Ad Hoc’s policies.

Your complaint may involve more than one aspect of the above, more than one department or be about someone working on our behalf.

What you can’t complain about?

There are some things which would be inappropriate for us to deal with through the complaints handling procedure. These include:

• Requests for repairs or improvement of works to a property where Ad Hoc staff have not had a reasonable opportunity to attempt to resolve;
  
• A request under Freedom of Information or Data Protection Legislation;
  
• An issue which is being or has been considered by a court or tribunal;
  
• An attempt to have a complaint reconsidered where we have already given our final decision following an investigation;
  
• Actions of an organisation that is not working for, or supported by, Ad Hoc.

If other procedures or rights of appeal may help you resolve your concerns in this respect, we will try to give you any appropriate information or advice which may help you. 

How do I make a complaint?

It is easier for us to resolve complaints if you raise them as soon as you become aware of any issue or you find out that you have a reason to complain. We request that you set out your complaint in writing to us via post or e-mail: complaints@adhocproperty.co.uk.

Information supporting your complaint

When we are investigating your complaint we will be relying on information provided by you and information you may already be holding. We may need to contact you to clarify details or request additional information where necessary. To help us investigate your complaint quickly and effectively, we will need the following information from you:

• Your full name and property address;
  
• Your preferred contact details;
  
• The nature of the complaint;
  
• A chronological account of what has occurred;
  
• Details of any steps that you have already taken to resolve the complaint;
  
• Details of conversations you may have had with us that may be relevant to your complaint;
  
• Names of any individuals involved;
  
• Copies of any documentary evidence in support of your complaint;
• How you would like us to resolve the matter.

Handling complaint information

All complaint information will be handled sensitively and will be kept confidential as far as practicable. However, details of the complaint and any documents you send us will be seen by the person investigating your complaint, by anyone named in the complaint and any relevant staff in the department(s) being complained about.

We will record your complaint for continuous improvement process and monitoring through regular review, your personal information will be recorded in accordance with relevant privacy legislation.

Our four stage complaint process

On receipt of your complaint we will use the following 4 stage complaint process if an immediate solution cannot be achieved:

Stage 1: Acknowledgement 

We will always register and acknowledge your complaint within 48 hours of receiving it. Please contact us in the event that you have not received an acknowledgment letter after this period (it may be that your complaint has not reached us as yet). 

Stage 2: Initial Resolution 

Your complaint will be referred to a Guardian Team of your local office, which will undertake an initial review of your complaint and determine what, if any, additional information or documentation may be required to complete an investigation. You may be contacted to clarify details or provide additional information where necessary.

If your complaint cannot be immediately resolved with a Guardian Manager, the Area Manager of your local office will investigate your complaint objectively and impartially, by considering the information you have provided us, our actions in relation to your dealings with us and any other information which may be available. He/she will seek to resolve your complaint and respond to you either with a resolution or a decision within 14 working days, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

A suitable resolution could include:

• an apology and/or explanation if something has gone wrong;
• an agreement to take immediate action to resolve the problem;
• an amendment to our business practices or policies.

Stage 3: Detailed Complaint Investigation

Should your complaint remain unresolved, or you remain dissatisfied with our initial response which requires further detailed investigation, your complaint may be escalated to senior management at Ad Hoc who can advise on next steps. Your complaint should be directed to:

Ad Hoc Property Management Complaints

Unit 20 & 21 Angel Gate, City Road, London, EC1V 2PT
Email: complaints@adhocproperty.co.uk

Your complaint will be allocated to a Director who will be furnished with all the information already supplied by you, any supporting documents and a summary of any actions, resolutions or decisions already made in relation to the complaint. If there is any further information or supporting documents which you wish to be considered at that stage, please provide them to us.

Under the Stage 3 of the complaints procedure we will:

• Acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 48 hours of receipt of your request to escalate your complaint to Stage 3;
• Thoroughly investigate your complaint;
• Where required, discuss your complaint with you to understand why you remain dissatisfied and what outcome you are looking for;
• Provide you with a full response to your complaint within 14 working days confirming whether the complaint is upheld or not, the steps taken to investigate the complaint, the conclusions derived from those investigations, and any action that may be taken as a result of the complaint.

*Should the detailed investigation of your complaint take longer than 14 working days, we will notify you of this in advance, provide you with revised time limits and keep you updated on progress. 

Stage 4: External Escalation 

If you are not satisfied with how the compliant has been handled, or the resolution provided by our senior management team, you can request us to escalate your complaint utilising the Property Guardian Providers Association (PGPA) Redress Scheme, for independent, external review of your complaint:

Property Guardian Providers Association, 483 Green Lanes, London, N13 4BS

Please note that the PGPA Redress Scheme can only be accessed when all internal complaint processes / procedures have been fully exhausted. The PGPA's will investigate your complaint independently and impartially, including reviewing our actions in regards to your complaint and take responsible steps to resolve the complaint.

For more information about the PGPA Redress Scheme, please visit https://www.propertyguardianproviders.com/pgpa-guardians-redress-scheme

Where appropriate, Ad Hoc reserves the right to amend this procedure at any time and shall notify you if any changes affect the process in which your particular complaint is handled.