How criticism can help lawyers to get better
A consumer’s right to complain about services is paramount
If you’re buying a new product or service, what would you want to know about it? Let’s start with the basics – the price and what you’d be getting for your money. But the explosion of review sites suggests that we also want to know what others have thought of it. We know their experience and circumstances won’t exactly fit our own, but hearing others’ views has always been a core part of our decision making. We’ve just moved word-of-mouth online.
That is a challenge for firms who now find good and bad comments about their services out there, in black and white for all to see. Sometimes with a right of reply, sometimes not. But there’s no holding back the seas and businesses have always had to consider the impact an unhappy customer willing to share their experience can have on their reputation.
Our guidance for lawyers explains why we believe good complaint handling is not only a vital risk management tool, but also a promotional tool. Managing a complaint well might turn an unhappy customer into one happy to sing your praises to their friends, family and cyberspace. Even if it doesn’t, being able to respond to show you tried will go a long way to demonstrating to others how you work. And knowing what is being said about your service at least gives you the chance to reflect and respond.
What we also make clear is that a consumer’s right to complain is paramount. However minor or baseless a business might believe a complaint to be, the consumer has a right to raise it, to have it considered objectively and – in the case of legal services – to bring it to the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission if they’re not happy with the response.
New guidance has been issued this month by the Law Society of Scotland to clarify that solicitors should not attempt to prevent or discourage people from exercising their right to complain, or to seek to prevent clients from making truthful comments about the services they’ve received.
It’s human nature to try to avoid a bad outcome, but attempts to prevent people from raising complaints is simply not acceptable. We wouldn’t expect it from our bank or train company, and we shouldn’t expect it from a lawyer.
We’ve seen attempts by firms to thwart a client’s right to complain by suggesting they will charge for their time to deal with the matter, by putting onerous requirements in place for complaints to be made, or by threatening legal action. We’ve also seen issues raised about how firms have responded to online reviews. While the numbers are small, this trend is simply unacceptable and robust disciplinary action can and has been taken against those found to be doing so.
It's hard not to take a complaint personally, but it is possible – and beneficial – to see any feedback, however negative it feels, as an opportunity to reflect, explain and if necessary, put things right.
Whether that’s behind closed doors or online, it also gives you a chance to show the quality of the service you can provide to that customer, and to any potential customers who see your response. That’s good risk management, but done right, it’s also a great opportunity to promote your service in exactly the place we’re all looking to help us decide what to buy.
Vicky Crichton is Director of Public Policy, Scottish Legal Complaints Commission