Gardeners Blackheath Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Blackheath is committed to providing reliable, professional gardening and outdoor maintenance services. We recognise that, on occasion, things may not go as planned. When this happens, we want to know about it so that we can put matters right and learn from the experience. This Complaints Procedure explains how you can raise a concern, what you can expect from us, and how we will work with you to reach a fair resolution.

Our Approach to Complaints

We treat all complaints seriously, whether they relate to one-off garden tidy ups, ongoing maintenance, landscaping work, or any other service we provide. Our aims are to respond promptly, investigate thoroughly, communicate clearly, and resolve issues wherever reasonably possible. We also use feedback to improve our standards, staff training and working practices.

We will handle your complaint in a courteous, open and non confrontational manner. Making a complaint will not affect any ongoing or future work we carry out for you, and we will continue to treat you with respect and professionalism throughout the process.

What Counts as a Complaint

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about our services, staff conduct, communication, charges, or how we have carried out agreed gardening or outdoor work. Examples include concerns about the quality of lawn care or planting, the tidiness of work areas, timings and punctuality, damage to property, or how our team have communicated with you on site.

If you are unsure whether an issue counts as a complaint, you are encouraged to raise it with us anyway. We would rather hear about your concern early so we can address it quickly and informally where possible.

How to Make a Complaint

You can make a complaint in writing or verbally. While we are happy to receive complaints in any reasonable form, we encourage you to put your complaint in writing wherever possible, as this helps us to understand the issue clearly and investigate it more efficiently.

When you contact us, please provide the following information so we can respond effectively:

The name the booking was made under and the service address, the date or dates of the gardening work you are unhappy with, a clear description of what went wrong and why you are dissatisfied, details of any conversations you have already had with members of our team about the issue, and what outcome you are seeking, for example a revisit, rectification work, or a review of charges. If relevant, you may also describe any photographs or documents you hold that relate to the complaint.

Timescales for Raising a Complaint

To help us investigate fully, we ask that you raise your complaint as soon as possible after the work has been carried out. For most issues relating to gardening services, we ask that complaints are raised within 28 days of the work taking place. This allows us to review site conditions while they are still recent and to speak to the team members who attended your property while the work is still fresh in their minds.

We will consider complaints raised after this time where there is a good reason for the delay, but it may be more difficult to investigate events accurately.

Our Complaints Process

Once we receive your complaint, we will follow a clear, staged process.

First, we will acknowledge your complaint. We aim to acknowledge written complaints within five working days. Where you raise a concern verbally, we will try to address it there and then. If this is not possible, we will confirm that your complaint has been logged and will be investigated.

Second, we will investigate. This may involve reviewing job sheets and notes from the original booking, speaking with the gardeners or team members who attended your property, considering any photographs or descriptions you have provided, and, where appropriate, arranging a follow up visit to inspect your garden or outdoor space.

Third, we will respond with our findings. We aim to provide a full response within 15 working days of acknowledging your complaint. If the investigation is likely to take longer, for example due to staff availability or the need to revisit your property, we will let you know and provide an estimated timescale.

Finally, we will set out any proposed resolution and the reasons for our decision. Where we uphold your complaint in full or in part, possible outcomes may include an apology and explanation, additional gardening work to rectify issues, a partial or full adjustment to charges where appropriate, or changes to our internal procedures or staff training.

If You Are Not Satisfied with the Outcome

If you are unhappy with our initial response, you may request that your complaint is reviewed by a more senior member of the team. When you do this, please explain why you are not satisfied with the original outcome and what further resolution you are seeking.

The senior review will focus on whether the original investigation was fair and thorough, whether our decision was reasonable based on the available evidence, and whether any additional steps are appropriate. We aim to complete this review and provide a final response within 15 working days of your request for a review.

Recording and Using Complaint Information

We keep a record of all complaints, including how they were resolved. This helps us to monitor recurring themes, identify areas where our gardening services or communication can improve, and provide additional training or guidance to our teams where needed.

Any personal information you provide in the course of making a complaint will be handled in line with data protection principles and used only for managing and reviewing your complaint, delivering our services, and improving our operations.

Reasonable Expectations

We will always do our best to resolve complaints fairly, but there may be occasions where we cannot agree to the outcome a customer is seeking. In these cases, we will explain clearly what we can and cannot do and why. We ask that customers treat our staff with courtesy and respect throughout the process, just as we will treat you. We may decide to limit or end communication where a complaint becomes abusive or unreasonable, though this will always be a last resort.

Gardeners Blackheath values every opportunity to improve our gardening services and customer care. Your feedback, whether positive or negative, plays an important role in helping us maintain high standards for homes and gardens in our service area.