Guide · Customer care · 5 min read
Writing a complaints procedure customers trust
Every builder gets complaints eventually. The difference between a professional business and a bad review is usually how quickly and predictably the complaint is handled.
What to include
- How a customer raises a complaint, and to whom
- How quickly you will acknowledge it, in working days
- How quickly you aim to resolve it, and how you will keep the customer updated
- What happens if the customer is not satisfied with your response
- A record of complaints, responses and outcomes kept on file
Issue it at the start, not after the argument
Handing the procedure over with the contract signals confidence. Producing it for the first time during a dispute rarely lands well.
Close the loop in writing
Confirm what was agreed, what you did and when it was completed. A written close-out protects you if the same issue is raised again months later.
Find your gaps in two minutes
The free Builder Standard Assessment scores you out of 100 across contracts, payments, records, customer care and insurance, then shows exactly where you are losing marks. If documents or processes are missing, the £295 Professional Standards Audit helps you compile them.
This guidance is general information, not legal advice. Builder Standard is an independent platform and is not a government body, statutory regulator or government-endorsed scheme, and it cannot register or certify contractors for any government scheme.
Questions
Common questions
Do builders have to have a complaints procedure?
Requirements vary by trade body, scheme membership and contract type, but a written procedure is widely expected as good practice and is a standard feature of professional operations.
Does Builder Standard handle complaints about builders?
Builder Standard is not an ombudsman or regulator and does not adjudicate disputes. It assesses and documents professional standards; complaints about a contractor should go to that contractor's own procedure and, if unresolved, to the appropriate redress route.
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