Complaints Procedure

Simple Claims Assistance is here

to make the Complex Clear

Please contact us in the first instance so we can find a way to resolve any concerns using one of the following methods:

Phone: 0203 997 6199
Email: info@sca.co.uk
By Post: CEO/Owner Andrew Zgorski
23 Mount Park Crescent, Ealing, London, W5 2RN

In a PERFECT WORLD..

Simple Claims Assistance is run by humans and we are not 100% perfect, so should you wish to make a formal complaint we have a policy which helps us both ensure steps are taken to resolve it as soon as possible.

»Complaints may be received directly from customers or from third – party representatives.

»All complaints are recorded, logged and refered to CEO/Owner Andrew Zgorski.

»All complaints are acknowledged within 24 hours of receipt and we look to resolve it within three working days.

»If an acceptable resolution is reached we will write to confirm this and your rights in relation to complaining to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Should we fail to resolve your complaint in five (5) working days, we will investigate competently, diligently and impartially and provide a final response to your complaint in full
within eight weeks.

If we are unable to resolve the complaint within this time limit due to exceptional circumstances we will send a written response which explains why Simple Claims Assistance has been unable to provide a final response, and when it expects to provide one.

If you are not satisfied with our response, or if a complaint is not resolved after eight (8) weeks, you may refer the complaint to:
The Financial Ombudsman Service
Exchange Tower
London
E14 9SR
Telephone: 0800 023 4567

Email: complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Further information is available on the Financial Ombudsman Service website:
www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Complaint Handling Procedure

Should you have cause to make a complaint, you can do so over the phone on 0800 368 8601, via email to andrew@sca.co.uk, or by post to Rosehill Barns, Chetwode, Bucks, MK18 4LF.

We will acknowledge a complaint within five working days of receipt, giving the name and the job title of the individual handling the complaint on behalf of the company, and providing details of the company’s complaints handling procedures.

We will issue a response within eight weeks, understood as 40 working days, or we will provide an explanation of why we are not yet able to give a final response, and indicate when you can expect one. The final response will also inform you of how you may refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman including their contact details.

If we decide to uphold your complaint, we will determine any appropriate forms of redress to be offered by the company. Appropriate redress will not always involve financial redress.

The person investigating the complaint, whether the Complaints Manager or some other person, shall have authority to settle the complaint on behalf of the company.

If you are dissatisfied with the final response we issue, or if your complaint is not resolved within eight weeks, you may refer the complaint to the Legal Ombudsman, whose contact details are below. A complaint to the Legal Ombudsman has to be made within 6 months of the date of our final response.

Legal Ombudsman contact details:

Postal address: PO Box 6804, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WG

Email address: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Telephone: 0300 555 0333

Should the Legal Ombudsman require any assistance in regard to the investigation, consideration, or determination of a complaint, the company shall provide such assistance as it reasonably can.

The company will maintain records of all complaints handled by the company under the above procedures.

Frequently asked questions

Is Simple Claims Assistance able to help me?
If you opened a SIPP (Self Invested Personal Pension) in the last ten years and invested in one or more high-risk non-standard investments through your SIPP, Simple Claims Assistance may be able to help you.
What is a non-standard (high-risk) investment?
It is an investment that cannot easily or quickly be sold and turned into cash. It could include overseas hotel rooms, interests in farmland and forestry, self-storage units, shares and bonds in unquoted companies, plots in land-banking schemes and many others. In fact, it is any investment other than those, which can be readily bought and sold.
Is there anything wrong with non-standard investments?
Whatever you may have been told, almost all non-standard investments are high-risk. Unless you are quite wealthy, acquiring non-standard investments as a way of saving for your retirement is likely to be unwise. Additionally, many of the non-standard investments acquired through SIPPs have not performed as promised, often failing altogether.
Why am I entitled to compensation?
The FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) regulates both the SIPP operators and the Financial Advisers (FAs) that may have advised on SIPPs. If a Financial Adviser advised you, then they may have broken FCA rules. Therefore, the SIPP operators may also have broken FCA rules. In the year 2000 Parliament created special bodies through which victims of bad practice by Financial Advisers and SIPP operators can obtain compensation.
What could my Financial Adviser have done wrong?
It is likely that they advised on opening your SIPP and on your moving existing pensions into it, without properly assessing whether a SIPP was suitable for you. Equally without conducting correct assessment of the non-standard investments introduced into your SIPP.
What could my SIPP operator have done wrong?
The SIPP operator may have accepted your or your adviser’s instructions to purchase non-standard investments, knowing that you were receiving bad advice, or the advice was given unlawfully. The SIPP operator may not have conducted adequate due diligence on the investments. Not exercising sufficient duty of care.
Was criminality involved?
Some providers of non-standard investments may have acted criminally; and it is possible that some Financial Advisers also did so. Simple Claims Assistance will report any suspicion of criminality to the appropriate authority. But Simple Claims Assistance’s primary focus is on the civil claims you have against regulated entities, especially Financial Advisers and SIPP operators.

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Complaints