Winston Solicitors complaints

Complaints

We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy with the service we have provided to you or you have concerns about our charges then you should inform us immediately so that we can do our best to resolve the problem for you.

Dissatisfied with our service?

Initially please contact the person who is handling your matter to discuss your concerns. Alternatively, or if your concerns are not resolved by the person handling your matter please contact the person supervising their work. The name of the supervisor is set out in the client care letter sent to you at the start of your case.

We will do our best to resolve any concerns at this stage but if you still have concerns and feel you need to make a formal complaint, our full complaints procedure is detailed in this document. Making a complaint will not affect how your case is handled.

Making a formal complaint

We are committed to providing a high-quality legal service to all our clients. If something goes wrong you need to tell us about it, so that we can put matters right. It will also help us to improve our standards.

If you are not satisfied with our response to your concerns having raised them to the person handling your matter and their supervisor, you should make a formal complaint which will be handled by our Complaints Handling Partner.

What will happen next

  1. Within three days of receiving your complaint we will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint, let you know the name of the person handling your complaint and request you to confirm or explain any details which we require to investigate your complaint. If it seems that it would assist to resolve your complaint we will suggest a meeting with you.
  2. We will record your complaint in our central register and open a separate file for your complaint.
  3. The timetable/actions for investigating your complaint are likely to be as follows:
    • Within three days of receiving your complaint the person investigating your complaint will raise it with the person complained about, and where appropriate call for your file of papers.
    • Within fourteen days of receiving your complaint the person dealing with your complaint will either invite you to a meeting to resolve the complaint, or send you a detailed reply, which will include suggestions for resolving the matter.
  4. If you are still not satisfied that your complaint has been resolved, please let us know, and your complaint will be reviewed within fourteen days of you notifying us by another partner in this firm.
  5. We will let you know the result of this review within five days of completing the review and we will write to you confirming our final position on your complaint and explaining our reasons.
  6. If you remain dissatisfied you have a right to take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman, an independent complaints body established under the Legal Services Act 2007, that deals with legal services complaints. Their contact details are set out below.

What you may do if we cannot resolve your complaint

If we are unable to help you, then you can have the complaint independently looked at by the Legal Ombudsman. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how your case is handled. Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have there are some time limits for taking your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman.

You should do so:

  • Within 6 months of receiving our final response to your complaint

and

  • No more than 1 year from the date of act/omission about which you are complaining,

or

  • No more than 1 year from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman their contact details are:

How the SRA can help you

The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money, or treating you unfairly because of your age, disability, or other characteristic. You can raise your concerns with Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Our commitment to you

We are pleased that we very rarely have to use our complaints procedure – and if any client is dissatisfied with our service, and wishes to use it, we will do our utmost to resolve the complaint to our client’s satisfaction.

Client feedback

Hannah at Winston helped me with filing the financial issues of my divorce to the court. She liaised with my ex husband as I was at a point I could no longer speak to him. I am very grateful to Winston’s and especially Hannah.
Anonymous
We are so grateful to Sidraa for all her support during our recent property purchase. She kept us informed and up to date every step of the way, always responding promptly and sharing information clearly and in a timely manner.Sidraa worked incredibly hard behind the scenes, handling so much of the legal side with care and efficiency — often without us even realising just how much she was doing. Her dedication and thoroughness made the whole process feel smooth and stress-free, which we deeply appreciate.Thanks to her professionalism and attention to detail, what is usually a complex and sometimes overwhelming process felt straightforward and well-managed. We couldn’t have asked for a better solicitor and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Sidraa to anyone buying a property.
Sahid
Winston's supported me with their professional services. They were very swift in responding to my initial enquiry, then very quickly put me in touch with someone with the correct professional experience. They explained every step of the process and made the whole exeriance feel very easy.
Andrew
I would highly recommend Winston Solicitors to anyone in need of reliable legal support. Sidraa was outstanding throughout our entire process—reliable, diligent, informative, and genuinely kind. She kept us consistently updated, always took the time to explain things clearly, and was readily available to speak with us directly whenever we had questions. Her professionalism and personal touch made a potentially stressful process feel smooth and manageable.
Jacob C
Great service by Winston Solicitors - was communicated at every step - would recommend both Tom and Sidraa for their professionalism
Anonymous
We had our Wills updated and redrafted very recently. We received a really good service from Emily. She gave us very good advice, was extremly communicative and responsive and enabled us to get the Wills we wanted.
Anonymous
Excellent
Anna L
I have recently worked with Samira and Dervinder, and I couldn't be more satisfied with the service I received. From the very beginning, they were both professional, responsive, and extremely knowledgeable. They took the time to explain every step of the legal process in clear and understandable terms, and their attention to detail and genuine care for achieving the best possible outcome truly stood out. 10 out of 10!
Joanne
Contact Jonathan