We always want to improve our services. We want you to tell us what you think by letting us know:
- when we are doing a good job
- when you think we could do better
Our customer promise tells you the level of service you can expect from us.
We aim to give our customers good services, but sometimes things go wrong. When this happens, we want you to tell us so that we can try and put things right.
Before you start
The best way to sort out many problems is to contact the service directly. Where possible, a member of our service team will do their best to resolve the issue for you.
Contact details are available in letters or emails we have sent you or in our contact us section.
Common tasks that are not complaints:
- missed bin collection
- roads, highways and maintenance
- planning appeals
- report a planning enforcement concern
- Freedom of Information (FOI) requests
- compensation claims - Insurance Team
- challenge a parking fine
- Council Tax appeals
- Housing Benefit disputes
- report anti-social behaviour
- Environmental Health issues (including lost dogs, bonfires, pest problems, noise, issue with condition of your home)
- public toilets
If you are still unhappy, you can make a complaint so that we can look into the matter further.
Make a complaint
To make a formal complaint submit our form:
We follow a standard complaints procedure. We have separate policies for adult and childrens' social care matters.
- Children's Services complaints policy
- Adult Services complaints policy
- How are we doing? - Your guide to making a comment, compliment or complaint
Or you can write to us
Complaints Team
Freepost
Business Reply Licence number RRYH-AGJZ-TRGG
Colliton Park
Dorchester
Dorset
DT1 1XJ
Or by phone
Contact our Customer Services team: 01305 221000
What happens next
We will let you know we have your complaint within 3 working days. We will then try to resolve your complaint for you wherever possible.
We will consider your complaint against the appropriate procedure depending on what your complaint is about. You will receive a response within the relevant timescale for that policy.
If we need more time to investigate your complaint we will contact you to let you know when we expect to have a final response for you.
Once we have investigated:
- we will apologise, and look to put things right if we have failed to provide the level of service you should expect
- you can ask the Local Government Ombudsman to look at your complaint if you are still unhappy