Fine & Country - Formal Complaints Procedure

As a Fine and Country customer you expect a first class service from us and we aim to provide it. We have high standards, but if you believe we have made a mistake, please get in touch with us as soon as possible and we will do everything we can to put it right.

We are also subject to the rules of The Property Ombudsman. In general terms this gives Clients who are unable to resolve a complaint against us the right to have this reviewed by an independent body, the Ombudsman.

We hope that our complaints procedure will resolve any complaint without the need for you to contact The Property Ombudsman. Please note that the Ombudsman will not investigate your complaint before you have completed our complaints procedure and received a letter or email from us giving our final response.

This document shows the steps in our complaints procedure. At every stage we promise to listen, to do everything we can to resolve your problem and to make sure you're happy with the way we do it.

Our Complaints Procedure

If you have a problem relating to the service you have received, please discuss this at the earliest opportunity with one of our members of staff. Our aim is to deal with your problem sympathetically, fairly and quickly.

If you feel that the matter is not being resolved to your satisfaction, please ask to speak to the Manager of the department dealing with your enquiry. The Manager will try to resolve the matter on the day you raise your complaint, although whether this is possible will depend on the complexity of the complaint.

If the response by one of our Managers does not resolve the matter to your satisfaction, you can ask the Manager to refer the complaint to one of the Directors. It is better if you can do this in writing to:

Mr Adam Farrell
Fine & Country
46 Church Road
Hove
BN3 2FN

A letter of acknowledgement will be sent to you within 3 working days. It will also:

Set out our understanding of your complaint and state when we will be able to reply in greater detail.

You may also be asked for additional information if this is required to assist resolving the matter.

Your letter should state why you are still dissatisfied and what further action you wish Fine & Country to take to fully resolve your complaint. The Director will fully investigate your complaint as quickly as possible.

In all but exceptional cases, by the end of eight weeks following receipt of your complaint, Fine & Country will have given you its final response in writing.

If you are still not satisfied with the steps taken by Fine & Country, you can write to:

The Property Ombudsman Ltd, Milford House, 43-55 Milford Street, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP1 2BP (Telephone: (01722) 333306 or e-mail: [email protected]).

The Property Ombudsman will consider your complaint, taking into account any points made by you and Sawyer & Co. The Ombudsman may, however, refuse to investigate a complaint when your issue refers to something that happened more than 12 months before you complained in writing to the Member Agency, or you referred your complaint to the Ombudsman more than six months after you received the Member Agency's final offer of settlement or answer.

The Ombudsman's Office may try to settle the dispute by agreement between you and Fine & Country. If this is unsuccessful, the Ombudsman will consider all the relevant factors and make a decision according to what he believes to be fair in all the circumstances.

The Ombudsman will send his decision to you and Fine & Country. You can accept or reject his decision. If you reject the Ombudsman's decision, it will lapse and you are free to do as you wish.