Consumer rights queries can cause a lot of frustration, especially if you are struggling to engage with the company about the problem you have faced.
To help combat this, this article focuses on advice and tips to help resolve your consumer rights issue as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Please note different industries and businesses will have different complaints procedures, so we always recommend seeking professional advice before undertaking legal action.
Any links below are for third parties not directly related to Frederick Place Chambers.
Knowing Your Rights
Knowing your rights under the law will always help when it comes to any legal issue, and consumer rights law is no different.
The best place to start is with the actual legislation. We have included a link to the Consumer Rights Act 2015 here. You may need to take some time looking through this to find the section that applies to you, but understanding your rights is crucial in terms of clarifying what support you have, and if the issue is one you can take further.
Making A Complaint
One of the main aspects of a consumer rights issue is contacting the company to get the issue resolved. In an ideal situation after your initial complaint the company will accept some kind of liability, and you can find a mutual solution to resolve the situation.
However you may need to escalate this if you are not satisfied with their response, so it is important that you make your complaint in a clear and professional way to ensure the best response.
There are standard procedures that will help make any complaint more efficient.
-Make sure you have the dates of any purchases, and keep hold of any related paperwork or emails.
-Ensure your response is polite but assertive, with good spelling and grammar throughout. Avoid abusive language, and aggressive writing styles such as block capitals.
-Check that you have included a clear ask, and indicated what you would like the company to do, and what you are looking to achieve.
We appreciate this may be something you have some concerns with, so to help with this we have included a link to the Citizens Advice Bureau here.
This is an invaluable free resource for UK residents, and on itssite you can find template letters, further advice, and contact details should you wish to contact them.
Taking Further Action
Even if you try all the steps above, there may still be times when you are not satisfied with the response a company provides. This is where you might want to try some more formal legal steps, such as consulting an ombudsman, or even going to court.
Please note you would need to have gone through the formal complaints procedure of a company to take this on. This is a serious step, and can involve a lot of extra effort and time, and may involve fees too. We would always recommend ensuring you have tried every other option before undertaking this.
However if you are looking to take things further, you can consider either an ombudsmen or the small claims court. We have included some further information about both below.
We hope this advice is useful, and wish you the best of luck in resolving your query.
We also deal with a range of legal queries at Frederick Place Chambers. You can find more information on the rest of our website, and we are available to discuss any questions within our expertise by phone, email or in a meeting at our chambers in Clifton, Bristol.