If we have done something wrong, or you think we have, we want to hear it. This procedure applies equally to clients, to businesses and individuals we have contacted about a debt, and to anyone else affected by what we do.
If your complaint is about a debt we are pursuing and goes to whether the money is owed or how much, tell us and we pause collection on the amount in question while we look into it. You do not need to keep paying a sum that is genuinely in dispute in order to make a complaint.
Any way that suits you. Email complaints@clearline.co.uk, write to us at [address], or tell the person you are dealing with, by phone or in writing, that you wish to make a complaint. You do not have to use the word "complaint" for us to treat it as one: any expression of dissatisfaction is logged and handled under this procedure.
It helps if you can give us your reference number, what happened, when, and what you would like us to do about it, but nothing is required and we will not delay while we ask for detail.
| Stage | What we do | Timescale |
|---|---|---|
| Acknowledgement | We confirm receipt and give you the name of the person handling it | Within 2 working days |
| Investigation | We review the file, the correspondence and any call recordings, and speak to the people involved | Begins immediately |
| Holding update | If we need longer, we tell you why and when to expect an answer | By working day 10 |
| Final response | A written answer setting out what we found, what we got right or wrong, and what we will do | Within 15 working days |
| Review | If you are not satisfied, a director who has not been involved reviews it afresh | Within 10 working days of your request |
Depending on what happened: an apology, correcting a record, withdrawing or reissuing a communication, adjusting a fee, changing how or how often we contact you, pausing or closing an account, and changing our own processes so it does not happen again. Where a complaint reveals a fault in a template or a policy rather than a person, we change the template or the policy.
You can ask us for a copy of your complaint file at any time. For anything involving your personal data, you may complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or 0303 123 1113. For a debt that is disputed on its substance, you retain all your legal rights and nothing in this procedure affects them; you may also take independent legal advice, and sole traders can get free advice from Business Debtline on 0800 197 6026.
Every complaint is logged with its cause and outcome, and the log is reviewed monthly by a director. Complaint numbers per hundred accounts are one of the quality measures we track internally and publish alongside our recovery statistics, because a recovery firm that hides its complaint rate is telling you something.