Complaints

We know that things don’t always go to plan, but give us a chance to fix it. Call 0345 604 1472 to speak to our customer service advisors about the issues you’re experiencing, and they will attempt to fix this and find a resolution during the call.

Whether you have a small problem, or you want to make a formal complaint, or you have an idea for how we can make things better, let us know using our online form at the foot of the page.

If they are not able to, or you would still like to raise a complaint, they can also log this for you.

As an organisation that puts the Customer First and promotes a culture of Listen, Act and Learn, we strive to investigate and resolve complaints swiftly and identify learning outcomes that will help drive positive change for our customers. These outcomes may identify where we may need to review our policies and procedures, any additional training that may be required or a change to the delivery of a service.

The Complaints Process

How are complaints investigated?

Your complaint will be logged on our system and assigned to an investigating officer who will take all the necessary steps to investigate the issues raised, agree an outcome, and respond in writing. All complaints are investigated in line with the Housing Ombudsman Service’s Complaint Handling Code.

How long will it take?

Stage 1 complaints are investigated and responded to within 10 working days. Sometimes things may need further investigation, or we may be waiting for information that will help us respond effectively. On these occasions we will extend your complaint timeline by a further 10 working days, but we will always let you know when this happens.

What if I’m still unhappy?

You may not agree with the outcome of your stage 1 complaint. You can request to have your complaint escalated to stage 2 of our process. Escalation requests will be reviewed on an individual basis and you will receive acknowledgement within 5 working days if your complaint is to be investigated at stage 2. If your complaint is not escalated, you will be provided with the next steps available to you, including signposting to the Housing Ombudsman Service. Stage 2 complaints are investigated and responded to within 20 working days, with a possible 20 days extension if further time is needed.

Who Investigates Complaints?

Customer Experience Team

We have a dedicated complaints team who oversee and manage the LHP complaints process, ensuring that complaints are logged, investigated, and responded to in line with our policies and the Housing Ombudsman Service Complaint Handling code. The customer experience team advocate for our customers who wish to give feedback through a complaint or praise and work with all service areas to implement learning identified as part of complaint investigations.

Customer First Training

All LHP employees are trained on the LHP complaint processes and how to assist customers to ensure they are listened to and have any complaints investigated in line with our process.

Member for complaints

The Complaint Handling Code requires landlords to have a Member Responsible for Complaints (MRC) on their board to provide assurance on the effectiveness of its complaints system. This includes challenging complaints data. The MRC and a senior lead from the operational staff at LHP meet with the Customer Experience Manager each quarter to review and scrutinise complaints performance and report back to the Board.

Customer Complaints Panel

Customer voice is the heartbeat of the complaints process. Our customer complaints panel meet quarterly to scrutinise complaints data and perform a quality checks of complaint case studies. The panel offer insight and learning points for management to consider and implement to improve our services.

Self-Assessment

As part of our compliance with the Housing Ombudsman’s Compliant Handling Code, we conduct a self-assessment report. This report – completed by our Customer Experience Manager, and approved by our board – demonstrates that we’re compliant with the Code, and our commitment to ensuring that our complaint handling is in line with the Housing Ombudsman’s requirements.

View Our Self-Assessment Report

Links to the policies referenced in this self-assessment can be found here.

This self-assessment has been completed by our Customer Experience Manager and approved by our board. It demonstrates our compliance with the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code and our commitment to ensuring that our complaint handling is in line with Housing Ombudsman requirements. Links to the policies referenced in this self-assessment can be found here:

LHP Board Response

Our new policy is in line with the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code. We have assessed our service to check that we comply with the Ombudsman Code, and we are happy to say we do in all areas. However, there are some areas we would like to improve further including keeping customers updated with any complaint they have raised and sharing learning from complaints.

LHP are committed to improving the complaints process and recognise that in the past we have not provided the level of service expected by our customers. Every member of the LHP team is working hard to resolve any complaints in a timely and satisfactory matter. You can be assured that if you need to raise a concern with us, it will be dealt with appropriately and you will be listened to.

Who else could help me?

We would always encourage you to speak to us directly, as we can get things moving as soon as we are made aware of an issue. You can do this through the usual contact methods:

Online by completing the form at the bottom of this page
Via email at complaints@lincolnshirehp.com
On the telephone: 0345 604 1472
By direct message on social media: X or Facebook

However, there are other options available to you.

You can seek advice or support from the Housing Ombudsman Service at any point of your complaint. You can contact them via:

You can also contact your local Councillor or MP for assistance with any issues or complaints.

Listen, Act and Learn – Our learning outcomes

We’re committed to reporting learning from complaints and how we have used this to improve our services to you. We will report this to you on our website and in our “Complaints Corner” section in the Our House, Your Home magazine each quarter. You can view the latest “Complaints Corner” below.

Receiving complaints means listening to your feedback, learning from it, and acting upon it. Some of the changes that we have made so far include:

A robust pest control process
Changes to our shared ownership process
Changes to our ‘no access’ process

Complaints Corner

Welcome to Complaints Corner – a new section for Our House, Your Home that will delve into everything when it comes to complaints. Complaints are our chance to learn about what we need to do better. Each quarter, we’ll review the previous quarters trends and themes from the complaints we’ve received, and share what we’ve learned or changes we’ve made to improve our services and processes.

Remember – if you feel like something hasn’t gone the way you would have expected, or you’re unhappy with how a service has been delivered, then please do not be afraid to raise a complaint.

A complaint can be made via any of the communication routes to LHP:

Via telephone
Via email to customerfirst@lincolnshirehp.com
Via form through the dedicated complaints page on the LHP website
Via direct message on LHP’s Facebook page
Written letter to either of LHP’s office addresses
Via MyLHP app

Customer Complaint Panel – Q2 Update

Our Customer Complaint Panel sat down to review our Q2 complaints. This Q2 update covers July, August, and September.

Trends and Themes

Complaints regarding repairs increased over Q2. Our Digital Choices project is underway to review and improve our repairs service. We acknowledge the frustration that customers feel when repairs are not completed within reasonable timescales, and encourage customers to get involved and share feedback on our Digital Choices project.

Complaints vs Service Requests

Our complaints panel regularly look at our processes and procedures. A member of the panel challenged where a customer may wish to make a complaint, but where it had not been logged. The LHP policy that is guided by the Complaint Handling Code issued by the Housing Ombudsman Service, is for LHP to attempt to resolve issues where it can at the first point of contact.

These types of issues that can be resolved swiftly are classed as ‘service requests’, especially where they concern appointments, updates, or the raising of a repair. This is to reduce the need for customers to go through a long complaints process. However, if a customer still wishes to have their service request investigated as a complaint, LHP will still raise this as such.

More information on this can be found in the LHP Complaints Policy and the Complaint Handling Code, both available on the complaints page of the LHP website.

Learning for continuous improvement

Below are learning outcomes implemented over the past three months.