Complaints Handling

This procedure explains how we will deal with any complaints. It also tells you what you can do if you think your complaint has not been resolved to your satisfaction by Rightlease.

We are committed to providing a high-quality service to all our customers. When something goes wrong, we need you to tell us about it. This will help us to improve our standards.

If you have a complaint, please contact us using the below details;

3rd Floor, Stolt-Nielsen House

1-5 Oldchurch Rd

Romford RM7 0BQ

Or

Email: complaints@rightlease.co.uk

On receipt of a complaint, we will:

1. We will promptly send you a letter acknowledging receipt of your complaint enclosing a copy of this procedure.
2. We will review your complaint and speak to the member of staff who dealt with your enquiry and make contact to seek clarification on any points where necessary.
3. Fully investigate the complaint.
4. We will then discuss with you our findings and proposed response.

Adviser, Provider or Quality of Goods

Clients can express dissatisfaction to us about the product provider, or the quality of the goods. We will need to establish whether your complaint relates to the advice given, our service level, the service or performance of the product provider, or the quality of the goods. If unclear, this must not delay the investigation and we will proceed with our own investigation.

If the complaint is about another party, we will refer the details of the complaint to the third party and confirm this course of action to you in writing.

Investigation

We will establish the nature of your complaint considering the Financial Conduct Authority’s direction:

• Deal with complaints promptly and fairly.
• Give complainants clear replies and, where appropriate, fair redress.

Complaints Settled within 3 business days – Informal Complaints Process.

Complaints that can be settled to your satisfaction within 3 business days can be recorded and communicated via an informal process.

If a solution to your complaint is proposed and you indicate your acceptance, we will promptly send you written communication which includes:

• In reference to the fact that you have made a complaint and inform you that we now consider the complaint to have been resolved to your satisfaction.
• We will tell you that if you subsequently decide that you are dissatisfied with the resolution of the complaint you may be able to refer the complaint back to us for further consideration or alternatively refer the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service;

In addition to sending, you written communication, we may also use other methods to communicate the information where:

• We consider that doing so may better meet your needs; or
• We have already been using another method to communicate about the complaint.

Complaints which cannot be resolved within three business days – Formal Complaints Process

Where we judge that your complaint cannot be resolved within three business days, or we were unable to resolve your complaint in this timeframe, the formal FCA complaints procedure will be followed. This process requires that we:

1. Send you an initial response letter within five days of receiving your complaint, or immediately on realising the informal complaints handling process will not reach a resolution;
2. Provide you with details of our complaints handling procedures.
3. Fully investigate the complaint and, where necessary, make contact with you to seek clarification on any points;
4. Send you a final response letter as soon as possible, but no later than eight weeks after receiving the complaint, detailing how your complaint has been resolved and if any redress will be offered.

Final response

Our final response letter will set out clearly our decision and the reasons for it. If any financial redress is offered, it will be paid promptly and in full.

We will include details of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) in our final response. If you are unsatisfied with the outcome, you may be eligible to refer your complaint to FOS. You must refer the matter to FOS within six months of the date of this letter or the right to use this service is lost.

While we hope to meet a positive resolution, there could be instances where we aren’t able to resolve the matter as you may desire. If you disagree with our decision, we recommend that you contact our regulators, the BVRLA. You need to complete their complaints form (BVRLA Complaints Form) and submit it in writing or via complaint@bvrla.co.uk, doing this we will enter an alternative dispute resolution.

If we cannot resolve the complaint within eight weeks

While we would always aim to complete an investigation within eight weeks, if, for any reason, our investigation is not concluded within this period, we will write to you again.  We will inform you of the reasons for the further delay and advise that if you are not satisfied with our progress you may be entitled to refer the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Closing a complaint

When we receive confirmation from you that you are satisfied with the findings of the investigation and any resolution we have proposed, your complaint will be considered closed.

Where no confirmation has been received from you within four weeks of our final response letter, your complaint may also be considered closed.

Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS)

It is our policy to treat all customers the same, however, only eligible complainants may refer their complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). Eligible complainants are legally defined and have additional rights in law that we acknowledge and adhere to.

Eligible complainants are:

• A consumer
• Companies within the EU definition of a microenterprise
• Charities with an annual income of under £6,500,000
• Trustees of a trust with assets of under £5,000,000
• A small business (only an eligible complainant if the conduct took place after the 1st of April 2019)
• A guarantor

The Financial Conduct Authority complaints rules apply to complaints:

• Made by, or on behalf of an eligible complainant.
• Relating to regulated activity.
• Involving an allegation that the customer has suffered, or may suffer, financial loss, material distress or inconvenience.

We will co-operate fully, with FOS in resolving any complaints against us and agree to be bound by any awards made by FOS.                                    

The contact details for FOS are:

• Address: The Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London, E14 9SR
• Telephone: 0800 023 4567 (free for most people ringing from a fixed line), 0300 123 9123 (cheaper for those calling using a mobile), +44 20 7964 0500 (if calling from abroad)
• Email: info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
• Website: financial-ombudsman.org.uk