Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Aldgate Complaints Procedure

Gardeners Aldgate is committed to delivering reliable, professional gardening and outdoor maintenance services. We recognise that, on occasion, things may not go as expected. When that happens, we want to hear from you so we can put things right and improve our service. This complaints procedure explains how to raise a concern, how we will respond, and what you can expect from us throughout the process.

Our Approach to Complaints

We treat all complaints seriously, whether they relate to a one-off garden visit, a regular maintenance contract, or a larger landscaping project. Our aims are to respond promptly, listen carefully to what you tell us, and provide a fair and practical resolution wherever possible.

Every complaint is handled in confidence and is used to help us review our working practices, staff training and communication with clients in the local area we serve.

What Counts as a Complaint

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about our gardening services, conduct, communication or administration, where a response is expected or required. Examples may include:

Concerns about the quality or completeness of gardening work carried out at your property.

Issues with how our gardeners or office team have communicated with you.

Disputes relating to appointments, access to your garden, or timekeeping.

Concerns about invoicing or how your booking was handled.

You do not need to use any specific wording when raising a complaint. If you tell us you are unhappy and would like us to respond, we will treat it as a complaint.

How to Make a Complaint

You can raise a complaint in the way that is most convenient for you. You may contact us in writing or verbally. When making a complaint, please provide as much detail as possible, including:

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

The date or dates when the work was carried out or booked.

A clear description of what happened and why you are dissatisfied.

What you would like us to do to resolve the matter, if you have a preferred outcome.

Providing clear information from the outset helps us investigate your complaint efficiently and respond more quickly.

Stage One: Initial Complaint Handling

In the first instance, your complaint will normally be handled by a member of our office or customer service team. We aim to acknowledge your complaint as soon as reasonably possible and to resolve straightforward issues at this early stage.

Where the complaint relates to the standard of gardening work, we may ask the attending gardener or supervisor for information and, if appropriate, arrange to revisit your property to inspect the work. Our goal at this stage is to understand what has happened, offer an explanation, and agree any immediate corrective action where it is justified.

Stage Two: Escalation and Review

If you are not satisfied with the outcome at Stage One, or if the issue is more complex, you may ask for your complaint to be escalated. At this point, a senior member of our team will review the matter in more detail.

The Stage Two review may involve:

Examining notes, schedules and job records relating to the gardening visit.

Speaking with the gardeners or supervisors who attended your property.

Considering any photographs or other evidence you have supplied.

Assessing whether our service met the standards we expect and that we describe to clients.

Following this review, we will provide you with a response explaining our findings, any steps we have taken to investigate, and our proposed resolution. This may include remedial work, an adjustment to your invoice, or other practical solutions depending on the circumstances.

Timeframes for Responding

We aim to handle all complaints as efficiently as possible. While exact timescales may vary according to the complexity of the issue, we will always aim to:

Acknowledge your complaint within a reasonable timeframe.

Provide a more detailed response once the matter has been properly investigated.

Keep you informed if we need more time to complete our review.

If we need additional information from you, we will let you know. Delays in receiving requested details or access to the garden may extend the time needed to reach a conclusion, but we will keep you updated.

Possible Outcomes and Remedies

When a complaint is upheld, we will seek a remedy that is fair and proportionate. Depending on the circumstances, this may include:

Correcting or completing gardening work that did not meet the agreed specification, where it is practical to do so.

Offering an alternative service solution, such as an additional visit or adjustment to future work.

Making a reasonable adjustment to an invoice or issuing a credit where appropriate.

Providing further explanation or clarification if there has been a misunderstanding.

Where a complaint is not upheld, we will explain our reasons clearly and provide you with information about how we reached our decision.

Your Responsibilities

We ask that clients raising complaints treat our staff with courtesy and provide accurate, timely information to help us investigate. Please allow our gardeners or supervisors appropriate access to your garden or outdoor areas if a site visit is needed to assess any issues.

We may not be able to resolve concerns where we are not given a reasonable opportunity to inspect the work or where requested information is withheld.

Continuous Improvement

We use the feedback from complaints to improve the way we deliver gardening services across our service area. This may include updating our training, reviewing our scheduling processes, clarifying how we describe our services, or strengthening our quality checks.

By following this complaints procedure, we aim to resolve individual issues fairly and to continually enhance the experience we offer to all Gardeners Aldgate clients.