Gardeners Coombe Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Coombe is committed to providing reliable, professional gardening services and building long-term relationships with our customers. 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 improve our services for the future. This Complaints Procedure explains how to raise a concern, how we will respond, and what you can expect from us at each stage.

Our Commitment To You

We take all complaints seriously and aim to deal with them promptly, fairly, and consistently. Our aims are to listen to your concerns, understand what has happened, and agree a practical way forward wherever possible. We will always treat you with respect and expect the same courtesy in return.

We will use the information we receive through complaints to review our gardening services, staff training, and working practices, helping us to maintain high standards in gardens and outdoor spaces we care for in our service area.

What Counts As A Complaint

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about our gardening services, staff, communication, or administration where you would like a response or resolution. This might include issues such as the quality of work carried out, timings and reliability of visits, behaviour or conduct of team members, communication problems, billing concerns, or health and safety issues on site.

We welcome feedback of all kinds, including suggestions and compliments. If you are unsure whether your concern is a complaint, please raise it with us and we will guide you through the appropriate process.

How To Make A Complaint

You can make a complaint in writing or verbally. Providing as much detail as you can will help us investigate quickly and accurately. When submitting a complaint, it is helpful if you include your name, property or garden address where we carry out the work, the dates and times of any relevant visits, a clear description of what went wrong or what you are unhappy about, and what outcome you are seeking, if you have something specific in mind.

If your complaint relates to an ongoing gardening project or regular maintenance visit, please raise it as soon as possible so that we can address the issue promptly and minimise any disruption to your garden.

Stage One: Initial Resolution

In the first instance, we encourage you to raise your concern with the person or team member you normally deal with at Gardeners Coombe. Many issues can be resolved quickly at this stage through discussion, clarification, or a simple correction to our work schedule or approach.

We will aim to acknowledge your complaint at Stage One within a reasonable period of time and seek to resolve it as soon as possible. Where a site visit is needed to inspect the garden or outdoor area, we will arrange a convenient time with you.

Stage Two: Formal Complaint Review

If you are not satisfied with the outcome at Stage One, or if the matter is more serious or complex, you can ask for your complaint to be treated as a formal complaint. At this stage, a more senior member of the Gardeners Coombe team will review your complaint independently of the original staff involved.

We will acknowledge receipt of your formal complaint, explain who is handling it, and outline the next steps. We may need to contact you for further information or to clarify certain details about the gardening services provided. Where appropriate, we may carry out a further inspection of your garden or outdoor space to understand the issue fully.

Once our investigation is complete, we will provide you with a clear written response setting out what we have found, any factors we have taken into account, and any action we propose to take. This might include rectifying work, adjusting future schedules, reviewing our procedures, or explaining why we believe our actions were reasonable in the circumstances.

Timescales For Response

We aim to respond to all complaints as promptly as we reasonably can, taking into account the nature and complexity of the issue, the availability of staff, and the need for any site visits. Where we cannot provide a full response within our target timescales, we will let you know and explain when you can expect a further update.

During busier periods for gardening work, such as peak growing seasons, we may require additional time to investigate fully, especially if weather or seasonal factors form part of the complaint. However, we remain committed to keeping you informed throughout the process.

Possible Outcomes And Remedies

Our main goal is to resolve complaints fairly and restore confidence in our gardening services. Depending on the circumstances, possible outcomes may include an apology and explanation of what went wrong, corrective work in the garden or outdoor area, changes to how and when we deliver services to your property, review or clarification of charges where appropriate, and improvements to our internal processes or staff training.

We will always explain the reasoning behind our decisions, including where we do not uphold a complaint or can only partially agree with your view of events.

Confidentiality And Data Protection

All complaints are handled in confidence and shared only with those who need to know in order to investigate and resolve the issue. We will treat your personal information in line with our data protection responsibilities and use it only for the purposes of managing your complaint and delivering our gardening services.

Unreasonable Or Persistent Complaints

Gardeners Coombe is committed to treating all customers fairly and with respect, and we expect the same in return. While we will do our best to resolve genuine complaints, we may limit or manage contact with individuals whose behaviour is abusive, threatening, or persistent in a way that prevents us from dealing with the complaint effectively. Any such decision will be taken seriously and only after careful consideration.

Continuous Improvement

We view complaints as an important source of information about how our gardening services are performing across our service area. By reviewing complaints regularly, we can identify patterns, address recurring issues, and make improvements to how we plan, schedule, and deliver our work in gardens and outdoor spaces.

Thank you for taking the time to read this Complaints Procedure. If you have a concern about any aspect of Gardeners Coombe services, please raise it with us so that we can work with you to find a fair and practical resolution.