Unacceptable Client Behaviour

We are committed to providing an excellent service to all our clients. Please see our Client Care Policy and Vulnerable Clients Policy.

In return, we expect our clients to:

Most of our clients are satisfied with the service we provide. But we recognise that there can be delays, although not always of our making, and mistakes can happen. We accept that we can all act out of character in times of trouble or distress. But in a very small number of cases some clients behave in ways that are inappropriate and unacceptable, despite our best efforts to help them. Unacceptable behaviour makes it difficult for us to deal with your matter or complaint effectively.

If you do wish to make a formal complaint about the level of service provided, then please read our Complaints Policy. This policy enables us to deal with unacceptable customer behaviour professionally and consistently. It lets both our team and clients know what we consider to be unacceptable and outlines the steps we may take to deal with such behaviour. It applies to all clients.

 

What behaviours are unacceptable?

It is difficult to produce a comprehensive list of actions that would be considered unacceptable, but we have provided examples below.

2.1 Aggressive or abusive behaviour

This consists of behaviour (written or verbal) that we consider might cause employees to feel intimidated, offended, bullied, or harassed.

For example:

2.2 Unreasonable demands and vexatious complaints

This consists of unreasonable demands through the:

We accept that persistence is not necessarily a form of unacceptable behaviour. What amounts to unreasonable demands will depend on the circumstances of the complaint and the seriousness of the issues raised by a client.

However, clients who will not accept a decision taken in relation to their query, or persistently contact us about the same issue, can generate unreasonable demands which consequently take up a disproportionate amount of time and resources. This can affect our ability to provide a service to other clients.

Examples of behaviour that would fall within unreasonable demands and vexatious complaints include but are not limited to:

If a complaint is considered to be vexatious, we’ll take the actions outlined in this policy. We’ll inform you that future correspondence will only be reviewed to ensure no new issues have been raised. If not, it will be filed without acknowledgement.

Actions we may take in response to unacceptable behaviour

No member of staff must tolerate unacceptable or vexatious behaviour when communicating with clients. When this occurs, they have the right to:

However, before taking such action, it is reasonable to expect you are warned that your conduct is considered to be offensive to allow you the opportunity to moderate your behaviour.

Where these circumstances arise, we may take the following steps:

  1. We’ll ask you to modify your behaviour and explain why.
  2. If the behaviour continues the member of staff will remove themselves from the situation. This could include asking you to leave the premises.
  3. If the communication is by telephone you will be informed the call will be terminated.
  4. The member of staff will inform a Director and the incident will be recorded.
  5. In all cases a Director will investigate the situation and decide what action to take. This action could include asking you to transfer your matter to another firm of solicitors.
  6. We’ll refer the matter to the police where a criminal offence has been threatened or committed.

Communication restrictions

If you continue to display unacceptable behaviour, the Managing Director can authorise the decision to place a temporary or permanent communication restriction.

When communication is being restricted you will be told of the decision. Where possible, we will tell you in writing – but we may also tell you by telephone, supported by relevant notes on our records.

Communication might be:

Where circumstances are serious enough to warrant legal restrictions, we may apply for an injunction or court order to prohibit contact and/or unacceptable behaviour.

To get in touch with us

We would be delighted to explain how we can help. To contact us, please:

News

Please note that for the Christmas holidays we will close at 12 noon on Friday 22nd December and reopen at 9am on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

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What our clients say..

We recently had cause to take legal action to recover a debt relating to the purchase of a horse which had been mis-described/mis-represented by a private seller, we had to take the legal action to reject the horse because the owner went to ground and would not respond to our reasonable requests. For our family, purchasing our first horse, this was a disaster and we didn’t really know how to go about returning the horse and getting our money back from the private seller.

We were put in contact with Hannah Salter of Waddington Turner Wall/Michael Bower Equine Law and she was able to quickly grasp the circumstances that were relevant and helped us to devise a plan to put the situation right, this involved building a strong case from the available information that we provided and then embarking on the execution of the plan.

Hannah was available to us all the way through our recovery process and advised us well, eventually we succeeded at obtaining a County Court Judgement and we took that to the High Court and then enforced the instructions of the Court resulting in us recovering most of the costs associated and the horse was at last returned to the seller.

We greatly appreciated Hannah’s way of dealing with us as novice horse owners and she was able to build a very strong position for us to follow through the Court system-something that we had never experienced before.

I would recommend Hannah to any person who might find themselves in a similar position to ours-I am sure that you would appreciate the support and expert knowledge that Hannah has and then use it to good effect.

Steve & Rebecca Rees 17.06.2022   

We would like to pay tribute to the team at Michael Bower Equine Law who helped us secure justice last week in a misrepresentation case.

A top horsewoman with a string of event horses sold a Connemara with chronic behavioural issues as a ‘mother/daughter share’ with ‘no vices or issues’, for a 14 year old child, despite the pony’s history of bronking and rearing.

Having been warned of its history she sold it on then turned the tables when it was returned and refused to negotiate for 2 years.

In the Small Claims Court Michael Bower’s team won the case and secured the return of the purchase price, all associated losses and 50% of the costs, which is pretty rare for small claims.

We are so grateful and feel vindicated for returning this pony when it was so clearly wrong.

Thank you so much Michael Bower Equine Law for your great advice and support throughout.

Helen G G 31.05.2022   

The term ‘horse trading’, which came into usage around 1820, owes its origin to the notorious shrewdness of horse traders who bought and sold horses. Unfortunately, the term is still applicable as buying horses is as much a mine-field now, as it was two-hundred years ago.

Having fallen victim to a duplicitous trader, an expert was needed to resolve the ensuing dispute over return of the horse and refund of payment. In these situations, only the best will do and the recommendation to equine lawyer, Michael Bower, was a great blessing.

Through his extensive knowledge of equine law, Michael Bower applied his legal expertise to the circumstances of the sale and within a matter of weeks, the case was brought to a satisfactory conclusion.

In offering a professional service, Michael is direct and at the same time very personable which is greatly appreciated when dealing with a potentially stressful scenario.

I will be eternally grateful to Michael Bower for resolving my case and would not hesitate in recommending his excellent legal practice to anyone who falls victim to a twenty-first century horse trader, sadly, of whom there are many!

Alex A 26.05.2022   

We are so glad we rang Michael Bower Equine Law and spoke to Hannah Salter as from the first conversation she was very knowledgeable and easy to talk to, and she told us exactly what position we were in and what she recommended we did next.

She very supportive through a really tough and emotional time for us and always at the end of the phone to listen to any questions. Myself and my daughter can’t thank her enough for resolving our issue and would highly recommend her.

Jane and Milly Shaw 17.06.2021   

Thankyou for your time and assistance. I found the service offered by Hannah to be exceptional. The response to my initial request was prompt and pertinent with all follow up actions prepared in a diligent way. I would have no hesitation in using Hannah again and would fully recommend the service provided.

Regards

Christine

Christine Lilly 04.06.2021   

Thank you so much Michael and team for providing such fantastic advice and support, and for successfully securing a positive settlement. I highly recommend Michael; he is so knowledgeable and approachable. I felt very comfortable asking questions, nothing was too much bother. I was expertly guided through the whole process, being informed, advised and consulted the entire time.

Jo Fox 10.05.2021   

Michael put me at ease straight away. He was so approachable and welcoming from the the first minute I spoke to him. He had so much knowledge and gave me such fantastic advice. He really helped to clarify my position and ways forward. I would highly recommend Michael Bower for anyone wishing to seek legal advice and representation.

Mrs Young 26.10.2020   

Thanks again for going above and beyond to get that contract drawn up. We are very pleased with it!

We really are so happy with the work done and all your advice has been taken on board. Its been a great experience.

Ms Black 23.10.2020   

I asked Michael Bower to assist me on a potential property issue concerning our boundaries and rights of access.

I was very glad of his competent help and practical advice. He immediately came to view and discuss the site in question, and followed it up with detailed and rigorous research, document search of deed and land registry. His responses were detailed, clear and prompt. He was always easy to contact and gave realistic appraisal on the problem of pursuing the issue without adequate back up – including potential costs.

I would strongly recommend him for attending to enquiries of this kind

Nigel Young PhD. 16.09.2020   

I would like to thank Michael for the expedient, efficient, and professional manner in which he assisted me with a personal legal matter surrounding my horse.

His courteous, down to earth attitude and his ability to grasp the seriousness of the situation was indeed a great comfort to me. The matter has now been resolved and I can only thank Michael for his time in helping me sort the issue to its favourable conclusion.

I would have no reservations in recommending Michael and WTW solicitors to anyone.

Sue Williams 27.04.2020