Complaints procedure

We at Hill Park will try our best to offer you the best service possible.

However, issues do sometimes arise and we want to avoid you feeling unnecessarily concerned.

If you find you are concerned then please inform us by telephone as soon as possible.

The team will try to resolve anything they can with you at that time.

If this is not possible, we require a formal complaint in writing.  This can be posted/hand delivered to the main branch:

Practice Manager

Hill Park Veterinary Group

1 Lindfield Road

Harold Hill

RM3 9BJ

Or emailed directly to our office email: office@hillparkvets.co.uk

Please include:

  • Your name, address and preferred and convenient contact telephone number and email address

  • The name of your pet

  • The date on which you last attended the clinic

  • The branch visited

  • A brief description of your concerns

  • A summary of what in your opinion we can do to best deal with your concerns

If any of our colleagues were involved, it would be helpful if you can provide us with their names.

What if my complaint relates to out of hours service?

In the event your complaint is relating to an out of hours service or a referral service or treatment that was not provided by ourselves, we would ask you to firstly direct the complaint to the relevant service provider. If you are not sure whether or not this was the case, please ask any of our practice colleagues and we can quickly clarify to whom the complaint should be directed.  We would also appreciate if you could keep us updated on the outcome,

What if my complaint refers to the credit facility?

If your complaint is related to the provision of interest free credit please approach the providers - Care Free Credit - directly.  Contact details are available on their website: www.carefreecredit.co.uk.

You can contact the financial ombudsman service by:

Phone: 0800 0234 567

Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk

What will you do when you receive my complaint?

We will treat any point(s) you raise in confidentiality.  Upon receiving your correspondence, we will acknowledge receipt as soon as practically possible, within 5 working days.  We may contact you to find out more about your complaint.  If the matter needs further investigation before we are able to reach a conclusion we will do our best to look into it as quickly as possible and will reply to you as soon as we are able.  Once it has been decided the complaint needs further investigation it will become an “actionable complaint”.  You will receive a full letter of response within 8 weeks of the complaint becoming actionable.  The letter will be sent via post or email.

What if I am unhappy with the outcome?

Alternatively, you may contact appropriate external bodies such as the Veterinary Client Mediation Service (www.vetmediation.co.uk) or the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (www.rcvs.org.uk/home).