Complaints Procedure

COMPLAINTS PROCEDURES – V3.0 – Aug 2022

1. Definition

A complaint is defined as a service or work which has not been carried out to the satisfaction of the complainant. The complainant should be an owner of the flat or house managed by Evolve Block & Estate Management. Complaints can be made by email, letter, or on-line using our website. If you wish to make a complaint in a different language, then this should be in writing and additional time allowed for translation.

2. Informal Stage

Before initiating a formal complaint under the procedure set out below, the complainant may wish to raise a complaint on an informal basis. If this is the case then the complaint should be sent to the Property Manager with a copy to Helen Macrae as Chief Operations Officer: helen@evolve-management.co.uk

3. Formal Stage

STAGE 1

Any complaint should in the first instance should be sent to Helen Macrae as Chief Operations

Officer helen@evolve-management.co.uk or care of our Ringwood head office who will discuss & investigate the complaint with the colleague referenced.

The complaint will be acknowledged within 5 working days of receipt. The time limit for responding to the Stage 1 process is 15 working days

At the conclusion of our investigation of the complaint we will send the complainant a written

response including our decision, reasons for the decision, and what the next stage is if you are still dissatisfied.

STAGE 2

If you wish to appeal the decision reached at Stage 1 or the Stage 1 complaint has not been dealt with within the company timescales the complaint should be referred to Benjamin Hume, as

Managing Director. The complaint should be addressed to Benjamin Hume as Managing Director: ben@evolve-management.co.uk or care of our Ringwood head office.

At the conclusion of our investigation of the complaint we will send the complainant a written

response including our decision and reasons for the decision. We will also provide details of our PRS (The Property Redress Scheme) membership, PRS contact details and the 12-month timescale to refer the matter to the PRS if you remain dissatisfied. For details of the PRS please see below. The time limit for responding is 8 weeks from when the initial complaint was received.

4. Notes to Complaint Handling Procedure

If the complaint is complicated, requires additional information which is not readily available, or involves a third party such as a qualified surveyor then more time may be required to deal with the complaint than the timescales given above. If this is the case Evolve Block & Estate Management will contact you setting out a different timescale giving you the appropriate reasons.

The complainant may wish to consider mediation as an option if appropriate. If this is the case

please feel free to raise this with us as an alternative way of dealing with thecomplaint.

There are various sources of independent advice for leaseholders such as LEASE or Citizens Advice. There is also advice for leaseholders on the ARMA website (www.arma.org.uk). An independent source of information, for example, may assist where a complaint may have simply arisen from a misunderstanding.

5. The Property Redress Scheme

If you remain dissatisfied after the final stage of the in-house complaints procedure (or more than eight weeks has elapsed since the complaint was first made) you can request an independent review from The Property Redress Scheme withoutcharge.

Evolve Block & Estate Management Ltd is a member of The Property Redress Scheme which resolves disputes between consumers and property agents. The PRS contact details are below.

Property Redress Scheme
Premiere House,
1st Floor, Elstree Way,
Borehamwood, WD6 1JH
info@theprs.co.uk

A complaint can be made by any of the following:

• Freeholder
• Head leaseholder
• Leaseholder
• RMC (Residents’ ManagementCompany)
• Residents'Association
• RTM (Right to ManageCompany).

The PRS may not accept a complaint which is more appropriate for the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) or requires a legal interpretation by a court.

If a complaintis accepted by the PRS,wewill be contacted and asked for our “casefile”. The file will contain where relevant.

• Our company’s opinion on the complaint
• A specimen lease
• Our management agreement
• A copy of our complaint handlingprocedure
• Relevant correspondence/notes of phonecalls
• Details of the RMC or RTM including articles and directors
• Site inspection reports
• Copies of budgets and annual accounts,and
• Copies of service contracts.

If we believe the complaint can still be resolved, we will tell the PRS what our proposals are. Where the PRS can see a reasonable way forward, we may be asked about the complaint being settled without the need for a more formal report. If we and the complainant are willing, this will form a mutually acceptable settlement.

Please remember the PRS will make the decision based solely on the consideration of the evidence submitted by both parties.