Consumer ARB
Complaints Process: Step-by-Step
Step 1: Submit your Complaint
Once you’ve double-checked that the trader you’re complaining about is a Member of Consumer Arbitration, it’s time to submit your complaint to us!
PLEASE NOTE:
To submit your complaint to Consumer Arbitration, you must pay a small upfront fee depending on the amount your dispute is worth:
- £10 for disputes up to the value of £750
- £25 for disputes over the value of £750
You can submit your complaint via any of the following methods:
1) Our online complaints portal
2) Post, using a paper form
Please send your completed form to the following address:
Consumer Arbitration
Stratford Office Village
Unit 12 Walker Avenue, Wolverton
Milton Keynes
MK12 5TW
3) Telephone
Please call us on 0203 540 8063
Monday to Friday, 9:30am – 12:30pm
It is important that you fill out your complaint thoroughly and provide as much supporting evidence as possible to strengthen your case. For example:
- Receipts
- Photographs
- Copies of correspondence
Once you’ve submitted your complaint, we’ll check if it’s in scope for Consumer Arbitration & something we can deal with before moving you on to the next step.
Can’t remember what complaints we can deal with? Double-check HERE
Step 2: We review Eligibility
If your complaint isn’t in scope for Consumer Arbitration, we’ll inform you of this within 48 hours.
If your complaint is in scope for Consumer Arbitration, it gets registered.
We’ll then send you log-in details for our online portal.
Your claim will be managed via the portal from this point on.
Step 3: Trader Responds
The trader is given 21 days to provide a response.
They may:
- Settle the complaint
- Provide a written defence challenging the complaint
- Object that it falls out of Consumer Arbitration’s scope
Their response is then posted in the Online Portal.
If the trader raises a scope objection, this is considered first, and the response period is paused while we do so.
Step 4: You comment on the Defence
If the Trader chooses to challenge your complaint:
You get a 7-day window to submit a Reply.
Following submission of your Reply, the trader is given 7 days to provide any comment in relation to this.
Step 5: Complete Complaint File
After receiving the Consumer Response, we confirm that we have all information and evidence from both parties, and declare a Complete Complaint File.
From this point, no further documentation, information, or evidence is accepted from either party. This is to ensure fairness to both disputing parties.
Step 6: Final Decision
A specialist Arbitrator produces a final written decision (also known as an Award) within 30 days of establishing the Complete Complaint File (Step 5).
PLEASE NOTE:
Consumer Arbitration is an Arbitration scheme.
This means that the Final Decision of your Consumer Arbitration complaint is legally binding under the Arbitration Act 1996 and cannot be overturned unless a court decides it is a result of fraud, corruption or serious misconduct by the Arbitrator.
