Gardeners Colyers Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Colyers is committed to delivering reliable, high quality gardening and grounds maintenance services. We recognise that, on occasion, customers may feel that aspects of our service have not met their expectations. This Complaints Procedure explains how you can raise a concern, how we will respond, and the steps we will take to put things right wherever possible.

Our Commitment to You

We aim to provide a service that is professional, respectful and consistent. When something goes wrong, we will treat your complaint seriously and use it as an opportunity to review and improve our work. We are committed to:

Listening carefully to every complaint we receive.

Responding promptly and politely.

Investigating issues thoroughly and fairly.

Keeping you informed of progress and outcomes.

Taking appropriate action to resolve matters and prevent a recurrence where possible.

What This Procedure Covers

This Complaints Procedure applies to any dissatisfaction you have with the gardening services provided by Gardeners Colyers. This may include, for example:

The standard or quality of gardening work carried out, such as lawn care, hedge cutting, planting or garden tidy-ups.

Failure to attend at an agreed time or date without reasonable notice.

Conduct or behaviour of our team members while on your property.

Communication issues, including unclear information about work, timings or costs.

Health and safety concerns in relation to our activities on your premises.

This procedure does not cover matters that fall outside our direct control, such as extreme weather, restrictions imposed by property owners or managing agents, or issues involving third-party contractors not instructed by us.

How to Make a Complaint

We encourage you to raise any concerns as soon as possible so that we have the best opportunity to address them promptly. You may make a complaint verbally or in writing. Please provide as much detail as you can, including:

Your full name and the address where the gardening work took place.

The date and approximate time of the visit or work in question.

A clear description of what went wrong and why you are dissatisfied.

Any photographs or supporting information that may help us understand the issue.

Your preferred outcome, for example a return visit, remedial work or an explanation.

If you raise a concern while our gardeners are still on site, they will do their best to resolve it immediately where it is safe and practical to do so. If the matter cannot be resolved on the spot, it will be escalated in line with this procedure.

Our Complaints Handling Stages

We operate a clear, staged approach to dealing with complaints so that every concern is reviewed fairly and consistently.

Stage 1: Initial Review and Acknowledgement

Once we receive your complaint, we will log it internally and arrange for an appropriate member of our team to review it. We aim to acknowledge your complaint within a reasonable time. At this stage we will usually:

Confirm that we have received your complaint.

Check any relevant details such as your service history and recent visits.

Clarify any points if further information is required.

Explain the next steps and when you can expect a more detailed response.

Stage 2: Investigation

We will then investigate your complaint objectively. Depending on the nature of the issue, this may involve:

Speaking to the gardeners or supervisors who attended your property.

Reviewing any internal notes, schedules or job sheets.

Assessing photographs or other evidence supplied by you or recorded by our team.

Where appropriate, arranging a follow-up visit to inspect the garden or outdoor area.

We aim to complete our investigation and provide a substantive response within a reasonable timescale. If the issue is complex or requires additional time, we will let you know and keep you updated.

Stage 3: Outcome and Resolution

Once our investigation is complete, we will explain our findings and any conclusions we have reached. Where we find that our service has fallen below our standards, we will consider one or more of the following actions, as appropriate to the situation:

Offering to return to your property to carry out remedial work.

Adjusting future scheduled work to address any shortfalls.

Providing guidance or additional training to team members involved.

Reviewing our internal procedures to prevent similar issues in future.

If we believe that we have acted reasonably and in line with our obligations, we will explain the reasons for this, together with any available options.

If You Are Not Satisfied with the Outcome

If, after receiving our response, you remain unhappy with the outcome, you may ask for your complaint to be reviewed at a higher level within Gardeners Colyers. The review will consider:

Whether the complaint was handled in line with this procedure.

Whether all relevant information was taken into account.

Whether the outcome and any proposed resolution were fair and proportionate.

Following this review, we will provide you with a final response setting out our position.

Confidentiality and Data Protection

All complaints will be handled sensitively. Information you provide will be used only for the purposes of investigating and responding to your complaint, and for improving our services. We will store and process your information in line with our data protection responsibilities and applicable legislation.

Using Complaints to Improve Our Services

Gardeners Colyers values feedback from all customers, including those who raise concerns about our gardening work or customer service. We regularly review complaints and outcomes to identify patterns, training needs and opportunities to refine our working practices. By doing this, we aim to reduce the likelihood of similar issues arising in the future and to maintain a reliable, professional service across all the gardens and outdoor spaces we care for.

This Complaints Procedure is reviewed periodically to ensure it remains clear, fair and effective for all customers of Gardeners Colyers.