Complaints Policy
This complaints procedure is exclusively for the use of Helium clients. Some parts of this policy are only applicable to the complaints about the actions of the solicitors associated with Helium Law (the Helium Solicitors).
If you are not a client and are unhappy with the conduct of a Helium Solicitor please see the separate Non-Client Complaints Procedure below.
We strive for excellence and providing a clear and accurate legal service in a timely manner. We also pride ourselves on being friendly, approachable and helpful. Client satisfaction is a priority for us and we want the service you receive to reflect these principles. That is why we welcome hearing from you if you ever believe that our service has fallen short of these objectives.
What happens next?
We know it can sometimes be daunting to raise a complaint but we will never be offended if you do so. Your case or transaction will not be prejudiced by you raising concerns either. We hope you will not have any reason to complain, but in case you do, you should follow the procedure below.
The time limits for bringing a complaint to Helium's attention are: (a) within six months of the end of the matter on which you instructed us, or (b) within three months of you becoming aware of the circumstances giving rise to your complaint, whichever is the later. If you wish to complain about our service after the expiry of these time limits you may still be able to make a complaint directly to the Legal Ombudsman, but we will not be obliged in those circumstances to consider your complaint under this procedure and you should contact the Legal Ombudsman to establish whether your complaint falls within the time limits of the Ombudsman’s scheme.
First stage
- In the first instance, please raise your concerns directly with us by email, post or over the phone.
- When you do so, please set out as much detail as possible regarding your complaint. You may find the template letter on the Legal Ombudsman’s website useful (http://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/). We prefer to receive your complaint by email as we can then make sure we reply to all the points you raise: team@helium.law
- We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within five working days.
- We will tell you how long it will take us to investigate your complaint. This normally is around three or four weeks but it could be less or more (either due to the circumstances of your complaint, illness or holidays). In any event it should never be more than eight weeks after acknowledging receipt of your complaint.
- We will review your file and if necessary talk to any persons involved in your case.
- We will send you the result of our investigation by email or post, depending on how you contacted us in the first place or any preference you may have. We may also offer to meet with you to discuss your complaint and resolve it.
- If we agree with you and we find the service you received was not as we would expect from a Helium Solicitor, we will work with you to try to find a way to resolve your complaint.
- If we find that your complaint does not support a finding of poor service we will let you know the reasons why. We will let you know what to do if you are unhappy with our decision: we will tell you whether we agree to using Alternative Dispute Resolution, or whether your complaint can proceed to the Second Stage.
Second Stage
- If you remain unhappy, you have the right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman, an independent and impartial body, but you must do so within 6 months of our final letter to you, which we will always make clear when sending our final letter.
The Ombudsman’s contact details are:
Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6167
Slough SL1 0EH
Telephone: 0300 555 0333
Email address: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Helium Law is not a regulated legal service provider, but Helium Solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (the Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham, B1 1RN) (the SRA). This means that they are governed by a Code of Conduct and other professional rules, which you can access on the SRA’s website (www.sra.org.uk) or by calling 0370 606 2555. If you believe that they have behaved dishonestly, illegally or in breach of the SRA’s principles, you can complain to the SRA using the details provided above.
Non-Client Complaints Procedure
If you believe that a Helium Solicitor has behaved dishonestly, illegally, in breach of the SRA’s principles, or for some other reason you are dissatisfied with their conduct and you are not a client of Helium Law, you should raise the subject of your complaint with the person with whom you are dealing, or against whom the complaint is made, and if your complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction at that level you should email team@helium.law.
The time limits for bringing a complaint to our attention are within six months of the event giving rise to your complaint, or within three months of you becoming aware of the circumstances giving rise to it, whichever is the later. If you wish to complain about our service after the expiry of these time limits you may still be able to make a complaint directly to the Legal Ombudsman, but we will not be obliged in those circumstances to consider your complaint under this procedure and you should contact the Legal Ombudsman to establish whether your complaint falls within the time limits of the Ombudsman’s scheme.
We will let you know within 14 days of receipt of your complaint in writing how and in what timescale we propose to deal with your complaint depending on its nature, and in most circumstances we would expect that timescale not to exceed 28 days. Your complaint will be considered by our team. If at any stage you are unhappy with the way in which we deal with your complaint, you may ask the Legal Ombudsman and/or the SRA whether they will investigate your complaint. Both addresses are contained in the Client Complaints Procedure above. If you are legally represented in the matter giving rise to your complaint please note that we will only correspond with your solicitor.