Complaint Procedure

Complaints shall be made in writing to GITCHIA. By email to info@gitchiagroup.com. In order to be able to deal effectively with a complaint the complainant must include their full contact details. Should we receive an anonymous complaint we will pursue it as far as is reasonably practicable, but may not be able to fully conclude if communication cannot be established between ourselves and the complainant. When making a complaint please state clearly the full nature of the complaint. Remember we can only investigate FACTS!

Receiving a Complaint

Upon receipt of a complaint GITCHIA shall record the following details:

• Name of complainant
• Address (in order that we can respond)
• Date of complaint
• Certification number if an existing client
• Description of the complaint

We shall send you a written acknowledgement within 28 days confirming that we have received your complaint.

Investigating a Complaint

Full details of all complaints shall be forwarded to a Director of GITCHIA, who shall carry out a full investigation into the matter in order to :

• Establish if the allegations are true
• Establish the cause
• Identify any personnel involved
• Identify the contributory factors
• Identify any trend the complaint is not justified the complainant shall be informed and given the reasons why it is not justified. If the complaint is justified the Director shall instigate corrective action to the satisfaction of the complainant. The complainant shall be informed of the outcome.

​​​​​​​Justified :

A complaint that is ‘justified’ is a complaint that GITCHIA have accepted in either full or in part.

Not justified :

Not justified complaint is a complaint that upon investigation cannot be attributed to the activities of GITCHIA and therefore is not accepted in either part of full by GITCHIA.

If the complaint is not resolved after 28 days a further letter shall be issued to the complainant assuring them that the complaint is still under investigation.

Responding to Complaints

Complaints correspondence
Letter A	Acknowledge receipt of complaint
Letter B	Accepting the complaint or rejecting the complaint (justified or not justified)
Letter C (if resolved within 28 days letter 4 shall be issued instead)	Informing the complainant that it is still being investigated
Letter D	Informing the complainant of the outcome of the investigation and the actions taken.

Copies of all information shall be retained for a period not less then 3 years.

Reviewing Complaints

The Director shall subject all complaints to trend analysis and where a trend is identified take timely action to prevent reoccurrence. All complaints shall be reviewed at management review meetings. All complaints shall be reviewed at Committee meetings ny action taken shall be recorded in the appropriate minutes.

Please Note : The wording ‘complaint’ may also be taken to include any disputes. Where an issue can be resolved prior to a formal complaint being made the instigation of this complaints procedure may not be necessary. The complainant if an existing client shall be informed of the release of any information in relation to the investigation or resolution of a complaint. Confidential information shall not be released without the prior consent of the client.