Complaint Handling Statement and Procedure

Sustainable Energy First puts its customers at the heart of everything we do, and we are committed to providing excellent customer service.

However, we appreciate that sometimes things can go wrong.  When they do we strive to resolve all issues quickly and efficiently. Customer feedback is always welcomed as it is essential to the continual improvement of our systems and development of our services.

Click here for the Micro Business customer complaint procedure.

How to contact us

The easiest and quickest way to resolve your complaint is via your Strategic Account Manager by the communication method you deem most appropriate.

If you do not have a Strategic Account Manager, you can contact us by post, telephone or email using the details listed below.

  • Post – Sustainable Energy First, St Annes Buildings, 349 Clifton Drive North, St Annes, Lancashire, FY8 2NA.
  • Phone – 01253 789816
  • Emailfeedback@sefirst.com

If at any time you would prefer to talk to us face to face about your complaint, please indicate that in your correspondence so that we can accommodate your request at the earliest convenience.

Our process

All our employees are trained to offer you the best possible customer service and will do their utmost to help you.

We aim to reply to written correspondence within 5 working days after we receive your letter, however, more complex issues often take longer to investigate.

Due to the nature of our business, it is common that we may have to contact other agencies or suppliers to help resolve your complaint.

As part of resolving your complaint we will offer you an explanation. We will also take remedial action in appropriate circumstances.

A copy of our complaints handling process is available via email or post, free of charge.

Step 1 – to resolve your complaint at the first point of contact

When you contact us with a problem, we will attempt to resolve matters with you during the first communication.

However, if necessary, your complaint will be escalated, a review meeting will be conducted to fully investigate the matter. The review meeting will consist of all relevant internal parties to the complaint and the Corporate Compliance Manager.

If you write to us with a problem, please provide your full contact details so that we contact you appropriately to fully resolve matters as soon as practically possible. We may try to contact you by telephone to help with the resolution.

If we cannot resolve your complaint fully or have not agreed a form of resolution within 10 working days after your first contact, then you can proceed to the next step.

Step 2 – to resolve within 10 working days of escalation from Step 1

Following Step 1, if the complaint has not been resolved to your satisfaction, or you have not received confirmation of the steps being taken to try and resolve the issue, then you can raise the matter with our Chief Operating Officer who will undertake an independent internal review and aim to reach a resolution within 10 working days. You can contact the Chief Operating Officer, providing your name, and full contact details as follows:

  • Post – Chief Operating Officer, Sustainable Energy First, St. Annes Buildings, 349 Clifton Drive North, St. Annes, Lancashire, FY8 2NA
  • Phone – 01253 789816
  • Emailfeedback@sefirst.com

If you would prefer, you can deal with your complaint throughout this process by speaking with us rather than writing.

Step 3 – Independent help and advice

If you have not received a satisfactory response from our Chief Operating Officer within ten working days or if eight weeks have passed since you first registered your complaint you can take your complaint to a relevant third party.

Sustainable Energy First holds IS0 9001 certification, all complaints are logged and recorded through our Integrated Management System.

We regularly review the nature and cause of any complaints made and ensure appropriate steps, such as training or improved systems and process are put in place to ensure complaints do not reoccur, where possible.