Our approach
Most problems are solved by a phone call. Where that is not enough, this policy sets out how to make a formal complaint and what we will do about it. We would rather know when something has gone wrong than not, and complaints are the cheapest information a business can get about itself.
The principles we work to are fairness, accountability, transparency and using what we learn to stop the same thing happening again.
What counts as a complaint
A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction, spoken or written, justified or not, about a service we have provided or failed to provide, where you believe you have suffered or may suffer financial loss, distress or inconvenience. It can be about our people, our products, a delay, a decision we made, how we handled your information or anything else connected with our service.
General feedback that does not need a resolution is always welcome, but it is not handled under this policy.
Who can complain
Anyone who has dealt with us can complain. That includes merchants who hold an account, businesses that applied and were not approved, people who made an enquiry, and anyone acting on their behalf with their authority. Using a solicitor, a claims firm or any other representative is your choice and it makes no difference to how we handle the complaint or to the outcome.
How to complain
Email complaints@ecompay.co.uk, or write to Complaints, E Commerce Professionals Limited, 13 Whites Row, London, E1 7NF. You can also raise it on 0345 548 0072 at any time, and we will log it and confirm it back to you in writing.
We prefer complaints in writing because it means the details are clear and nothing is lost between us. To help us deal with it quickly, please tell us the following.
- Your name, your business name and how to contact you.
- Your merchant number or the reference on your account or application, if you have one.
- Who at eCom Pay you have been dealing with, if you know.
- What happened, when it happened and what has been done about it so far.
- What you would like us to do to put it right.
- Copies of anything that supports the complaint, such as emails, statements or screenshots.
If you need help putting a complaint together, or if you would find it easier to give it to us over the phone or in another format, tell us and we will take it down for you. Our accessibility statement explains the adjustments we can make.
Time limits
Please raise a complaint within six years of the event you are complaining about, or, if later, within three years of the date you became aware that you had cause to complain. We may still look at a complaint outside those periods, but we are not obliged to.
What happens next
We acknowledge every complaint when we receive it and tell you who is handling it. That person is not the person whose work is being complained about.
We then investigate. That means looking at the account records, the correspondence and the system logs, speaking to the people involved, and asking you for anything else we need. We assess what happened, whether the complaint should be upheld in whole or in part, what would put it right, and whether another organisation involved in your account is wholly or partly responsible.
Where we find that another organisation is responsible for part of what went wrong, we will pass that part on with your knowledge, tell you who we passed it to, and continue dealing with the part that is ours.
Our timescales
Where we can resolve the complaint to your satisfaction within three working days, we will write to you confirming what we have done and treat the matter as closed.
Otherwise we aim to send you a full written response within fifteen working days of receiving the complaint. That response will either uphold the complaint and set out what we are doing to put it right, offer a resolution without accepting the complaint, or explain why we are not upholding it and how we reached that view.
If the investigation is going to take longer than fifteen working days, we will contact you before that point, explain why, and tell you when to expect our response. In any event we will respond in full within thirty five working days.
You can ask how your complaint is progressing at any time by contacting the person handling it.
Costs
We do not charge for receiving or investigating a complaint. If you choose to appoint a representative, that is at your own cost. Where a complaint is upheld and money is due, we pay it to the business account we hold on record for you, whether or not you were represented.
If you are not satisfied
If you disagree with our response, tell us and we will have it reviewed by someone more senior who has not been involved so far. Set out what you think we have got wrong and any point you feel we did not address.
If your complaint concerns how we have handled personal information, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113. You can do that at any point, whether or not you have raised it with us first.
Nothing in this policy affects your legal rights or your ability to take a dispute to court.
What we do with complaints
We keep a record of every complaint and its outcome for three years from the date it was received. We review them for patterns, and where the same problem keeps appearing we change the process rather than keep apologising for it. This policy is reviewed at least once a year.