Complaints Procedure for Gardeners Sutton Customers

Gardeners Sutton is committed to providing reliable, professional gardening and grounds maintenance services. We recognise that occasionally things may not go as planned, and we welcome feedback so we can put matters right and improve our service. This complaints procedure explains how you can raise a concern, how we will respond, and what you can expect from us at each stage.

Our commitment to resolving complaints

We treat all complaints seriously, whether they relate to the quality of our gardening work, our communication, our staff, or our scheduling. Our aims are to resolve issues as quickly as possible, to deal with you respectfully and fairly, and to learn from every complaint so we can continually improve the services we provide in Sutton and the surrounding area.

You will never be charged for raising a complaint, and using this procedure will not affect your statutory rights.

What counts as a complaint

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about our gardening or customer service, where you are seeking a response or resolution. This can include, for example:

Poor quality of gardening work, lawn care, planting, pruning, or clearance
Missed or delayed appointments for regular garden maintenance
Concerns about the conduct or attitude of our gardeners or office team
Disputes about what was agreed in a quotation or work specification
Issues with access, tidiness, or the way your property was left
Any health, safety, or environmental concern related to our work

If you are unsure whether your issue counts as a complaint, please raise it with us anyway and we will handle it under this procedure where appropriate.

How to make a complaint

You can make a complaint in the way that is easiest for you. You may contact us in writing or verbally. Written complaints help us keep a clear record of the issue, but this is not a requirement. When making a complaint, please provide as much detail as you can, including:

Your full name and the address where the gardening work was carried out
The date or dates of the service you are unhappy with
A clear description of what went wrong and how it has affected you
Any steps you have already taken to try to resolve the issue
What you would like us to do to put things right

If your complaint is made on behalf of someone else, please make this clear and confirm that you have their permission to act on their behalf.

Stage 1: Informal resolution

Where possible, we encourage you to raise concerns at the earliest opportunity so we can address them quickly. This may involve speaking to the gardener on site at the time of the visit if it is safe and appropriate to do so, or contacting our office shortly after the work has been completed.

At this stage, we will aim to understand the issue fully and agree practical steps to resolve it. This might include revisiting the garden to correct work, adjusting future maintenance plans, or clarifying what has been agreed for future visits.

Many concerns can be resolved promptly and informally. However, if you are not satisfied with the initial response, or if the issue is more serious or complex, you can ask for your complaint to be escalated to Stage 2.

Stage 2: Formal complaint and investigation

When your complaint moves to Stage 2, it will be reviewed by a senior member of the Gardeners Sutton team who was not directly involved in the original work wherever possible. The investigation may include:

Reviewing your original enquiry, quotation, and any job notes
Speaking to the gardener or team who carried out the work
Examining photographs or other records relating to your garden
Arranging a site visit, if needed, to assess the situation in person

We will acknowledge your complaint, explain who is handling it, and give you an estimated timescale for our response. We aim to provide a full reply as soon as reasonably possible, taking into account the nature and complexity of the issue.

Our response and potential outcomes

Once our investigation is complete, we will explain our findings to you clearly. Our response will set out:

What we understand your complaint to be
What we have investigated and the evidence considered
Our decision and reasons for that decision
Any actions we propose to resolve the matter

Depending on the circumstances, possible outcomes may include:

A clear explanation, further information, or reassurance
A return visit to complete, correct, or improve the gardening work
Changes to future maintenance schedules or work methods
Internal training or changes to our procedures
Where appropriate, a goodwill gesture

We will always aim for an outcome that is fair and reasonable in light of the information available.

If you remain dissatisfied

If you are unhappy with the outcome of your complaint or the way it has been handled, you may ask for a further review. We will then consider whether any additional information or steps are required. After this stage, if we confirm that our position is final, we will make this clear to you and explain any further options that may be available to you outside Gardeners Sutton.

Confidentiality and data protection

All complaints are handled in confidence. Information is shared internally only with the staff who need it in order to investigate and respond to the issues raised. We will store and process your personal data in line with our data protection responsibilities and only for the purposes of managing your complaint and improving our gardening services.

Using feedback to improve our service

We review complaints and feedback regularly to identify patterns, recurring issues, or areas where our gardening services, customer communication, or scheduling can be improved. This may lead to updates to our staff training, work methods, quality checks, and service standards. Your feedback, whether positive or negative, helps Gardeners Sutton provide a more reliable and professional service for all customers.