If things go wrong!

Step One

Talk to the tradesman about the problem and give them a chance to put any problems right or to finish any work that is not finished. Stay calm, even if you are angry, and give evidence and examples to support your claims. Be fair, keep a written record and allow the firm the opportunity to respond to your points and fix any faults.

Step Two

If you are still not satisfied, you should send your complaint in writing or use our online facility and we will investigate your complaint. Our complaints procedure has been developed to be clear and fair. We will deal with complaints about the standard of work, materials and customer service. We the scheme operator may charge you for a full site inspection, however, if you or the tradesman takes legal action at this stage, we the scheme operator has the right to suspend or end the complaints process. If we the scheme operator agree with your complaint, the registered contractor will have to put the situation right. We the scheme operator may also decide on disciplinary action against the firm. Alternatively we the scheme operator may find that your complaint is not valid. In this case, you can appeal or move to step 3.

Step Three

If you are not happy with our decision, you can use a low-cost independent resolution service such as the mediation service, which has been provided for you. This service is designed to solve problems without going to court. If you feel that we the scheme operator have not followed our complaints procedure or dealt with the matter in the way we said we would, you can complain to TrustMark -step 4.

Step Four

You can complain to TrustMark about the way we the scheme operator handled your complaint. TrustMark will then investigate whether we the scheme operator, TreeCareApproved acted properly, however they cannot investigate the issue your original complaint was about as they must be unbiased in the way they operate.

Step Five

If TrustMark finds that we the scheme operator acted correctly, your complaint does not proceed further. If TrustMark finds that we the scheme operator was at fault, they can take a number of measures. These range from making us the scheme operator look at our complaint again, to taking disciplinary action against us the organisation, which could mean that TrustMark no longer approves us as a scheme operator. To refer your complaint to TrustMark, please submit your complaint to:

TrustMark
Englemere
Kings Ride
Ascot
Berkshire
SL5 7TB

Complaints procedure designed to settle problems without the need for legal action.

You can also download the information on this page in our simple one-page advice sheet on: How to complain about a TrustMark-registered firm.(PDF file)

What sort of disciplinary action will be taken against a registered contractor that breaks the rules?

TrustMark TreeCareApproved has a range of disciplinary measures in place in case a registered contractor does not meet the agreed standards. Serious cases may result in immediate expulsion but we would always rather the matter was resolved to all parties satisfaction.

I’ve started legal proceedings against my registered contractor – can TreeCareApproved help me?

No. Once legal proceedings have started against a registered contractor, we the scheme operator (or TrustMark itself) must suspend any investigation of your complaint.

I’m simply not prepared to let the registered contractor back into my home to do any further work – can I have a different contractor to do repairs?

No. Our procedures ask that you give the registered contractor a fair opportunity to complete the work or fix defects, provided it would not be unreasonable to expect you to do so. If you do not give the registered contractor the chance to make good its work, we as the scheme operator are entitled to end the complaints process.

What compensation am I entitled to?

We focus on helping you to get a good job done at a fair price; we do not give compensation. However, we the scheme operator operates a three stage.