Complaints
Complaints: Tell us if something hasn’t gone right!
We want to provide a fair and helpful service. If we’ve made a mistake, tell us - so we can put it right and learn from it.
- We define a complaint as: "An expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions, or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual resident or group of residents."
- A service request is when you ask us to do something (for example, report a repair, missed bin, or request information).
If you’re not sure which it is, please use our "What is a complaint page" for a more detailed rundown on what is defined as a complaint versus a service issue.
This page can be found on the right under the FAQ's/Key Information tab.
How to make a complaint
If you want to make a formal complaint, and it falls within the criteria set out in our Complaints policy (PDF 292KB), we will:
- Acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days
- Address it within 10 working days.
To get a quick resolution, please raise your issue with us as soon as possible.
What will happen next
We handle complaints in two simple stages. We’ll always confirm when we’ve received your complaint and what happens next.
Stage 1 – Initial response
- We’ll acknowledge within: 5 working days
- We’ll respond within: 10 working days
- What we’ll do: Look into what happened, speak to the right teams, and give you a clear outcome and reasons. If we need more time, we’ll tell you why and agree a new date.
Stage 2 – Review (if you’re still unhappy)
- Ask for a review within: 28 days of our Stage 1 response
- We’ll acknowledge within: 5 working days
- We’ll respond within: 20 working days
- What we’ll do: A senior officer, not involved before, will re-examine the case and our decision. We’ll confirm what will change (if anything) and why.
If you’re still not satisfied
After our final response, you may contact the Housing Ombudsman (for housing/tenancy matters) or the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman (for other services).
- Housing Ombudsman: Click Here
- LGSCO: Click Here
We’ll tell you which Ombudsman applies to your case.
Types of communication you may receive
Depending on your preferences and needs, we may contact you by:
- Email: For acknowledgements, updates, final responses and complaints satisfaction survey
- Phone: To clarify details or agree next steps
- Letter: If you prefer written post or require official confirmation
- In person / virtual meeting: For complex cases or to agree a plan together
For each complaint, you can expect:
- A receipt/acknowledgement confirming your reference number and next steps
- Progress updates if the investigation takes longer than expected
- A final response setting out our findings, any apologies, actions we’ll take, and when they’ll be completed
- A complaints satisfaction survey that lets us know how you felt the process was handled and how we can improve.
Outcomes you can expect
If we’ve made a mistake, we’ll:
- Apologise and explain what went wrong
- Put it right (for example, complete outstanding work or correct records)
- Offer a fair remedy where appropriate (for example, a goodwill gesture or reimbursement in line with our policy)
- Learn and improve (update processes, train staff, or change guidance)
Doing what we said we would
You should be able to rely on us to keep our promises. That means:
- Clear updates: We’ll tell you what we’re doing, by when, and who’s responsible.
- Realistic timeframes: If something changes, we’ll explain why and give a new date.
- Follow-through: We’ll check that actions we’ve agreed are completed and working for you.
- Learning from mistakes: If we’ve got it wrong, we’ll say so, put it right, and make improvements to stop it happening again.
Our Complaints Improvement Plan
Once a quarter we will be holding a Scrutiny Complaints Workshop will residents who have gone through the complaints process. The aim of the workshop is to gain a better understanding of the thoughts and opinions of our residents and how we can improve the service that we deliver.
We publish quarterly updates so you can see how complaints and the views of those making them, are helping us improve. Each update includes:
- What residents told us (themes and trends)
- What we did (actions taken and changes made)
- What difference it made (outcomes and performance measures)
- What we’re doing next (commitments and timescales)
Give feedback on our complaints service
If you have experienced excellent customer service, please let us know so that we can recognise the achievements of our colleagues. To send a compliment about a staff member or team, please email compliments@dacorum.gov.uk.
Tell us how we can improve
We’re committed to continually improving our complaints service, and your feedback helps us understand what we’re doing well and where we need to make changes.
E-mail us your comments
If you would like to tell us about your experience with any of our services, you can email talk-to-us@dacorum.gov.uk. Your comments will be shared with the appropriate service team.
Fill in our Complaints Satisfaction Survey
When your complaint is closed, you will also receive our Complaints Satisfaction Survey. Completing this quick survey helps us identify how we can improve the customer experience.
Take part in our Complaints Scrutiny Sessions
We hold regular Complaints Scrutiny Sessions, where residents work directly with us to review and improve our complaints process.
We invite residents who have made a complaint within the last six months to take part.
These sessions are an important part of how we ensure our approach is fair, clear and customer‑focused.
Each workshop brings together a small group of residents to review real examples and provide honest, constructive feedback on the complaints process. During the session, they will look at anonymised real‑life complaint responses and assess their clarity, tone and how effectively the issue was addressed.
They will also explore a range of staff communication personas, which showcase different communication styles. This helps us understand how these styles influence the customer experience during a complaint.
In addition to this, we invite them to share their own experiences of using the complaints service. We want to hear what worked well for them, as well as any areas you feel could be improved.
If you have any questions about our Complaints Scrutiny Sessions, please email: talk-to-us@dacorum.gov.uk
After each Scrutiny Session, we publish a summary of resident feedback and the actions we are taking in response.
Find out about our most recent Complaints Scrutiny Session
You can read the latest update here: You Said, We Did - Complaints Scrutiny Sessions
These updates highlight themes raised by residents and the improvements we’re making to ensure our complaints process is transparent, fair and easier to navigate.
Sign up for MyDacorum – your new customer portal
As part of improving our tenancy services, we’ve launched a new customer portal – MyDacorum. It’s designed to give you a faster, easier and more secure way to manage your council services online.
Through MyDacorum, you can:
- Make payments (rent, Council Tax, invoices, contents insurance, licence fees, benefit overpayments)
- Check bin collection dates and set up text reminders
- Access your Council Tax account through 'Citizens Access' – view statements, make applications and request changes
- View live rent statements
- Report complaints or issues
- Request services (waste equipment, assisted collections, garages)
- Track technical support requests
You can easily update your details by completing the ‘About You’ survey, available through your MyDacorum account. It’s quick, simple, and helps us improve our services for everyone.
We also want to make sure we have up-to-date information about you, so we can tailor our services to meet your needs. For example, if you tell us about a disability, health condition or mobility need, we can ensure any contractors working in your home are aware and can prioritise your repair requests appropriately.
👉 Already signed up? Log in to complete the survey today.
👉 Not registered yet? Sign up for MyDacorum here.
