Complaints Procedure — Kensington Skip Hire

Purpose and scope: This Complaints Procedure explains how customers can raise concerns about the quality, timeliness or safety of services provided by Kensington Skip Hire and sets out the steps we take to resolve issues fairly. It covers all skip and rubbish removal services across our operational rubbish company service area and applies to both domestic and commercial accounts. The aim is to provide a clear, consistent and transparent process for handling complaints within statutory and internal standards.

Our responsibilities include acknowledging complaints promptly, investigating thoroughly and implementing appropriate remedies. We treat every complaint as an opportunity to improve our waste removal service area performance, and to ensure compliance with operational and environmental obligations. This procedure is intended for formal complaints; informal concerns should ideally be raised with the crew or driver at the time of collection.

Definitions: For the purposes of this document, a complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction about a service provided by a skip hire or rubbish collection operator within our skip hire service area. A complainant is the person or organisation making the complaint. An investigation refers to the fact-finding, assessment and decision-making process used to resolve the matter.

When you wish to raise a formal complaint regarding our rubbish company service area activity, please provide a clear summary of the issue, including relevant dates, location (within the operational service area), vehicle or job reference where available, and any supporting evidence such as photographs or records of communication. Complaints should be concise and focused on the facts so that the investigation can proceed efficiently.

We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within a stated business timeframe and will make a preliminary assessment to identify whether immediate action is required to prevent harm, continued service failure, or regulatory breach. This includes assessing any environmental or health and safety implications arising from the issue in our waste removal service area operations.

Priority and initial response: Complaints involving potential safety risks, hazardous waste or significant environmental impact are treated as high priority. In these cases, our operations manager will convene an urgent review and, where necessary, arrange remedial action on site prior to completing the full investigation.

The investigation will be conducted by trained personnel who were not directly responsible for the matter under review, where feasible. This helps ensure impartiality and fairness. Our investigators will gather records, interview relevant staff, review vehicle logs and any photographic evidence, and compare practices against contractual obligations and internal standards for the skip hire and rubbish collection service area.

Where applicable, we will consider the following remedies: corrective action to prevent recurrence, replacement or re-performance of the service, proportionate refunds, or other reasonable compensation. We do not accept complaints that are abusive, vexatious or outside the scope of the agreement, and we will explain the reasons if a complaint cannot be upheld or is out of scope.

Decisions are recorded and communicated in writing, including the findings, the basis for the decision, and any proposed remedies. We will provide the complainant with an estimated timetable for resolution and keep them informed of any significant changes to that timetable.

Timeframes and escalation: Our standard target is to resolve most complaints within 15 working days of acknowledgement. Complex matters requiring site testing, third-party consultation or regulatory input may take longer; in such cases we will provide regular updates and an expected completion date. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome, the procedure provides an internal escalation route to a senior manager for review.

Escalation steps:

• Stage 1 — Initial investigation and response by the operations team.
• Stage 2 — Review by a senior manager if the complainant requests escalation.
• Stage 3 — Final internal review and written determination where required.

Record keeping and confidentiality: All complaints and investigations are documented and retained in accordance with our records retention policy and applicable legal requirements. Personal data is handled in line with data protection principles; records are accessible only to authorised personnel and used strictly for investigation, corrective action and quality improvement.

Learning and continuous improvement: Every upheld complaint informs our operational reviews and training programmes across the skip hire and rubbish removal service area. We analyse trends, implement corrective actions, and update procedures to reduce the likelihood of recurrence. Lessons learned may result in changes to route planning, crew training, vehicle maintenance or customer communication protocols.

Appeals and external review: If a complainant remains dissatisfied after exhausting the internal escalation route, they may seek an independent review from an appropriate third party with jurisdiction over environmental, consumer or transport matters. This procedure does not restrict that right, and we will cooperate with legitimate external reviews while respecting legal constraints and confidentiality obligations.

Final provisions: This Complaints Procedure is part of our commitments to quality and compliance across the operational area. It is reviewed periodically to reflect regulatory changes and improvements in industry practice. The document is intended to be transparent, fair and accessible, ensuring that complaints about any aspect of our rubbish company service area activity are dealt with promptly and effectively.