Complaints Procedure
Our Commitment
We are committed to providing the highest standard of veterinary care and customer service. We value feedback from our clients and take all complaints seriously. We view complaints as an opportunity to improve our services and strengthen the care we provide.
This procedure explains how we handle complaints in a fair, confidential, and timely manner.
How to Make a Complaint
If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of our service, please let us know as soon as possible.
You can make a complaint by:
• Speaking to a member of our reception team or the Practice Manager.
• Telephoning the practice.
• Writing to us by post.
• Sending an email to the practice.
All contact details can be found here.
When making a complaint, please provide:
• Your name and contact details.
• Your pet's name.
• A description of your concerns.
• Relevant dates and times.
• What outcome you are seeking, where appropriate.
Our Complaints Process
Stage 1 – Initial Response
• We will acknowledge your complaint within three working days.
• We will record your complaint and begin an investigation.
• Wherever possible, we aim to resolve straightforward concerns quickly.
Stage 2 – Investigation
The investigation may include:
• Reviewing your pet's clinical records.
• Speaking with the members of staff involved.
• Reviewing our policies and procedures where relevant.
• Seeking additional information from you if required.
• Seeking advise from external bodies.
The investigation will be overseen by the Practice Manager or an appropriate senior member of the veterinary team. If the complaint concerns the Practice Manager, another senior manager or practice director will oversee the investigation.
Stage 3 – Outcome
We aim to provide a full written response within 30 days of acknowledging your complaint.
If additional time is required due to the complexity of the investigation, we will keep you informed of the reasons for the delay and provide an updated timescale.
Our response may include:
• An explanation of what happened.
• An apology where appropriate.
• Details of any actions taken or planned.
• Information about changes made to help prevent similar issues in the future.
If You Remain Dissatisfied
If you are not satisfied with our response, you may request that the complaint is reviewed by the Practice Director or another senior member of the management team who has not previously been involved.
Where appropriate, clients may also seek independent advice or contact the relevant professional or regulatory body regarding concerns about professional conduct.
Confidentiality
All complaints will be handled confidentially and in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. Information will only be shared with those directly involved in investigating and resolving the complaint.
Learning from Complaints
We regularly review complaints to identify trends and opportunities for improvement. Where appropriate, changes to our procedures, staff training, or service delivery will be implemented to improve the quality of care we provide.
Our Standards
We will:
• Treat all complainants with courtesy and respect.
• Investigate complaints fairly and impartially.
• Keep you informed of progress.
• Respond honestly and openly.
• Learn from feedback to improve our services.
We ask that all communication with our staff remains respectful. We are committed to maintaining a safe working environment and will not tolerate abusive, threatening, or discriminatory behaviour towards our team.