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Complaints

We want our services to be good, but we recognise that sometimes things go wrong, and customers will want to let us know.

We aim to be open and honest with our customers, so we’ve outlined the service that you can expect from Thrive and what we expect in return from our customers in our offer and ask statements. You can access these at thrivehomes.org.uk/thrivedeal

When we deal with complaints, we want to be fair, put things right if we have done wrong, and learn from our mistakes. We take customer feedback seriously and use it to shape our services.

Tell us if things aren’t good enough

If you would like to tell us that you aren’t happy with the service that you have received, you need to let us know within 12 months of the service failure, otherwise we may not be able to accept the complaint.

When you make a complaint, please let us know:

  • What you are unhappy about?
  • When the problem started?
  • The names of anyone you have spoken to at Thrive about the issue, and when you spoke to them.
  • How you would like us to resolve the problem?

You can make a complaint using our online complaints form, by email to enquiries@thrivehomes.org.uk, call 0800 917 6000 or write to us here.

View our complaints policy

  • What does Thrive consider a complaint?

    We define complaints as ‘An expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual resident or group of residents.’ 

    We will always look to resolve stage 1 and stage 2 complaints, but there may be occasions when we aren’t able to find a solution.

    Before any decision is made, we assess each case on its own merits and, if we're unable to accept your complaint, we'll write to you and explain why.

    Customers have the right to take this decision to the Housing Ombudsman who may not agree that the exclusion has been fairly applied.

     

  • What isn't a complaint and where should I go to get those matters resolved?
    What isn't a complaint?
    Who should I contact?
    The first time you ask for a service eg. reporting a repair or a request for information. This is known as a 'service request'.

    To raise a new service request you should contact Thrive Homes by: 
    Lettings decisions Your local authority. You can find out who your local authority is at: www.gov.uk/find-local-council
    Environmental Health Notices, Housing Health and Safety Rating Notices (HHSRS)
    General from councillors and MPs not generally related to a complaint

    www.gov.uk/housing-tribunals or
    External appeals process e.g. First Tier Tribunal or decisions made in a court of law
    Leaseholder consultation observations by emailing: homeownership@thrivehomes.org.uk
    Appeals by emailing: enquiries@thrivehomes.org.uk 

    Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB)

    This will be handled through the ASB process. To report ASB please contact: enquiries@thrivehomes.org.uk
    Criminal matters These will need to be reported to the police on 999 in an emergency or 101 if it’s not urgent.
    Appeals enquiries@thrivehomes.org.uk
    Anything that is subject to court proceedings Our complaint process doesn’t operate the same way as a court and is unable to make legal decisions. We wouldn’t make findings on matters such as negligence, liability or discrimination and we do not make orders of compensation in the way that a court may order a payment of damages. Please contact: enquiries@thrivehomes.org.uk
    Insurance claims We do not look at claims the way an insurance provider would, or award financial redress for damage to items which should be covered by insurance via our complaint process. Any such matters would need to go through our insurance team. Please contact: enquiries@thrivehomes.org.uk
    The matter occurred over 12 months ago

    Where the issue took place over 12 months ago, and we’ve had no contact on the matter since then, we would not be able to investigate the complaint.

    However, if the issue took place over 12 months ago, and there’s reasonable evidence to suggest that the customer only recently became aware of the issue, we would still consider taking this through the complaint process at our own discretion.
    Where we’ve already issued a final response to the matter in a previous complaint.

    The customer would then need to refer this matter to the Housing Ombudsman.

    *Although not considered a complaint we capture dissatisfaction with a policy or the offer and ask and review feedback annually to determine if a change is needed.

  • How can I submit a complaint?

    If you choose to make a complaint you can do so in a variety of ways including:

    *Complaints made on social media will be taken offline to ensure confidentiality and the complaints process will be followed.

    If you need any support or assistance in making a complaint then please let us know and we will do our best to help or if you prefer, provide you with the details of other organisations that can help.

    Appointing a third-party representative

    You can appoint a third party to act as your representative for your complaint. If you’d like to do this, please complete the ‘third party authorisation’ form which can be found here. 

    If you’d prefer to send it back to us by post, please download the form here and send the it to:

    Thrive Homes, Westside, London Road, Hemel Hempstead HP3 9TD

    For a hard copy of the form, please contact the complaints team on 0800 917 6077 or by emailing complaints@thrivehomes.org.uk. 

    Our complaints process aims to be fair and is open to all and you can read more about our approach to inclusivity in our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Statement of Intent.

    If you’d like a hard copy of this process, you can download this to print at home or ask us to send you a copy by calling 0800 917 6077.

  • What is the complaints process?

    We operate a two-stage complaints process.

    In the first instance, your complaint will be classed as a ‘Stage 1 Complaint’ and an appropriate member of the Thrive team will be assigned to work with you to try and resolve the issue(s).

    We always look to resolve complaints as quickly as possible. Where we can identify a resolution without the need for a full stage 1 investigation, we will confirm this with you and agree what action we are taking to put things right, how we’ve learnt from their complaint and their referral rights. An early resolution will not prevent or delay your right to escalate the complaint to stage 2 if you choose. 

    If you aren’t satisfied with the outcome at this stage, your complaint will be escalated and considered a ‘Stage 2 Complaint’. The person who investigates your stage 2 response will not be the same person who investigated stage 1.

    We aim to be transparent and keep customers well-informed. At each stage of the complaints process, you will be contacted within five working days to acknowledge your complaint, to confirm our understanding of your complaint and the outcome that you are seeking. We will also agree and clarify any next steps.

    You will receive the Stage 1 decision within 10 working days from the acknowledgement of your complaint. If this is not possible, we will send you an explanation as to why and a date for when you can expect to receive a response. This should not exceed a further 10 days without good reason.

    We always hope that we will be able to put things right at the initial stage, but if you aren’t satisfied with the outcome you can escalate your complaint to Stage 2. You can request this once you have received our full reply to your Stage 1 complaint.

    You can expect to receive a response to your Stage 2 complaint within 20 working days of your stage 2 complaint being acknowledged. If this is not possible, we will send you an explanation as to why and a date for when you can expect to receive a response. This should not exceed a further 20 days without good reason.

  • I’ve been through your complaints process and I’m still not happy. What options do I have now?

    If after going through our complaints process you don’t feel that things have been put right, you have the right to refer your complaint to the Housing Ombudsman.

    The Housing Ombudsman Service’s contact details are as follows:

    Customers who live in high rise buildings

    For customers who live in high rise buildings that are unhappy with how we’ve dealt with concerns about the safety of their building can refer the complaint to the building safety regulator. The building regulator will then investigate the safety aspect of the complaint. If the customer is unhappy with the handling of the complaint itself, they can still refer this matter to the Housing Ombudsman.

    Details of how to contact the building safety regulator can be found here:  The Building Safety Act - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

  • I want to take my complaint to the Housing Ombudsman

    If you’re unhappy with how we are dealing with your complaint, you have the right to contact the Housing Ombudsman Service at any time.

    They can provide you with advice and guidance relating to your complaint, and once we have sent you our final response, they can investigate the case further.

    We will always keep you informed of the latest status of your complaint in writing, and we will make it clear when our response is final.

    The Housing Ombudsman Service’s contact details are as follows:

  • Unreasonable behaviour

    All complaints will be dealt with as outlined in the complaints process.

    Very occasionally we find that complainants behave in an unreasonable manner. If we think that you are behaving in an unreasonable way, we will tell you. We might restrict access and contact with us or even take legal action for breaking the terms of your tenancy or lease.

    Some examples of what we consider unreasonable behaviour are:

    • Continuing to complain about the same issue again and again (more than three times) even when we consider that we have done all that we can to resolve the issue and the complaints process has been followed.
    • Raising the same complaint without grounds, just to cause annoyance and disruption.
    • Threats.
    • Physical and verbal abuse.
    • Insulting remarks and rudeness.

Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code self-assessment October 2022

How we measure ourselves against the Housing Ombudsmans complaints handling code
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