Newlyn

Complaints about Newlyn PLC

We are committed to providing excellent service to our clients and customers but understand there will be times when someone may wish to express concerns about our actions. There may also be occasions when we do not get everything right the first time.

Newlyn PLC values the opportunity to investigate complaints, which will be taken seriously and handled in an honest, fair and proportionate manner.

Please be assured that making a complaint to us will not affect the service you receive; we will listen to your concerns and treat you fairly. If we identify a fault or error, we will say sorry and take action to make things right for you.

We learn from complaints, feedback or compliments to improve our services and performance for all customers and stakeholders, providing continuous improvement across all areas. We do this by analysing the cause of complaints, carrying out trend analysis, and making process changes or implementing other measures to improve our service and reduce complaints.

We aim to resolve all concerns at the earliest stage by fully investigating the circumstances, using all available knowledge and evidence to reach a fair and reasonable conclusion.

What is a complaint?

A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction, however put, that requires a response. It will be about the negative impact of the standard of service, actions or inaction provided by Newlyn PLC, our staff or contractors.

How to make a complaint

To ensure that your complaint is clearly understood and to help us resolve this sooner, we encourage you to send your concerns in writing. Other ways to make a complaint are available as detailed below.

· Email: complaints@newlynplc.co.uk

· Online: Complaints Form

· Live chat: www.newlynplc.co.uk

· Phone: 01604 623268

· Post: Newlyn PLC, PO Box 933, Northampton, NN1 2NE

Please ensure you include your Case ID, contact details and any evidence you would like us to consider in support of your complaint.

Further assistance and reasonable adjustments

If you require assistance making a complaint, or if you need any adjustments to help you submit your concerns, please contact our Customer Resolutions Team by calling 01604 623268 or emailing complaints@newlynplc.co.uk. All reasonable adjustments will be considered based on your needs.

Where you would like someone to make a complaint on your behalf, please provide your written consent for them to represent you, as we will be unable to share information about your case without your permission to do so.

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, further information about the ways you may escalate a complaint can be found on the Government website: www.gov.uk/your-rights-bailiffs/how-to-complain-about-a-bailiff.

The Enforcement Conduct Board also has an independent complaints process that you may be able to follow, our team will be able to provide more information to you and details can be found on their website: www.enforcementconductboard.org

Our complaints process

We follow a simple two-stage complaints process that allows you to escalate your concerns if you are not satisfied with the response provided.

Your complaint will be handled by a trained professional within our Customer Resolutions Team.

When we receive your complaint, we will send you an acknowledgement within 2 working days. This will confirm who will reply to you and when you can expect to receive our response.

· Stage One – Informal Review

One of our Customer Resolutions Officers will review your concerns and all relevant evidence such as call recordings and bodyworn video. They will contact you within 5 working days of your complaint being acknowledged to try and resolve your concerns.

We will usually try to speak to you by telephone at this stage, as this is often the quickest way to agree on a resolution.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of our informal review, you may request that your complaint be considered at Stage Two of our process. You can request this when speaking with our team or by contacting us using any of the above methods, to explain why you remain dissatisfied following our informal review.

If your complaint is particularly complex and covers multiple or significant areas of concern, we may feel it is not suitable for an informal review and decide to review your complaint at Stage Two of our process. If this is the case, we will confirm this as soon as possible.

· Stage Two – Formal Review

We will carry out a further, formal review of your complaint. At this stage, a senior member of our Customer Resolutions Team who has not previously been involved with your case will undertake a further review of your concerns, including all evidence submitted by you or held by us.

Following review, a formal response will be issued to you in writing. This will address all areas of your concerns, explain our decision and what evidence has been considered in reaching this conclusion. Where we have agreed to take action to resolve your complaint, we will confirm the timescales for implementing this action. We will aim to issue this response within 20 working days of acknowledging receipt of your Stage Two complaint.

In exceptional circumstances, our investigation may take longer than 20 working days. In this case, we will provide you with an update indicating the reason for any delay and when you can expect to receive our response. We will continue to keep you updated until a response has been sent to you.

Should you remain dissatisfied following our internal investigations, you may be able to refer your complaint to the Enforcement Conduct Board, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman or CIVEA. This will depend on the type of debt that your complaint relates to. Our team will tell you which options apply to you.

Complaints we are unable to consider

Most complaints will be suitable for assessment through this policy but there are occasions where it will not be possible or suitable to consider your concerns through this process.

Examples include where the complaint is about actions taken by the Local Authority or Creditor before we were instructed, if the issue has already been investigated and adjudicated upon by the Enforcement Conduct Board, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman or CIVEA, if we have already issued a formal response to you at Stage Two of this process or where legal action is/has been taken about the same issue.

If we are unable to consider your complaint in line with this policy, we will contact you to explain the reason why and advise if there are other ways you can pursue your complaint.

Free advice

For free advice on money and debt, contact any of the agencies below.

Citizens Advice on 03444 111 444

www.citizensadvice.org.uk

Money Advice on 0300 500 5000

www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk

National Debtline on 0808 808 4000

www.nationaldebtline.org

Stepchange Debt Charity on 0800 138 1111