Complaints Procedure

Help us to put things right when things go wrong

At UnityLink Financial Services Limited, we are committed to providing a professional, efficient, and transparent service. Our goal is to respond promptly and courteously, offering helpful and clear guidance whenever someone contacts us.

We value feedback from all our customers and members of the public, as it helps us improve and ensure we are meeting your expectations.

We also understand that, occasionally, things may not go as planned. If this happens, we want to hear from you. Your feedback allows us to resolve any issues quickly, put things right, and learn from the experience to improve our services.

How to make a complaint

You can make a complaint in writing by letter, email, or telephone.

We recommend that you first raise your complaint with the member of staff you have been dealing with. This allows them the chance to explain any actions taken and try to resolve the matter quickly.

If you prefer, you can ask the staff member for the name of their line manager and send your complaint to them, or you can contact our Complaints Manager directly.

What happens next?

We are committed to handling complaints thoroughly, fairly, and respectfully. We will investigate your complaint carefully and aim to respond promptly.

Our goal is to provide a full reply within 15 business days from the date we receive your complaint. If we need more time—for example, to carry out a detailed investigation—we will send you an interim response. This will explain what we are doing, who is handling your complaint, and when you can expect a full reply.

If, after our response, you are still not satisfied, you may contact the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) for further advice. Taking your complaint to the FOS will not affect your legal rights.

Please note that all complaints are recorded by UnityLink Financial Services Limited. We provide a summary of complaints to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and we also use this information internally to help improve our products and services.

Complaints Handling Procedures

UnityLink Financial Services Limited is committed to operating in line with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) complaint-handling procedures.

We aim to resolve PSD (Payment Services Directive) complaints within 15 business days, or in exceptional cases, within 35 business days from the date we receive your complaint. For all other complaints, we aim to resolve them within 8 weeks of receipt.

If we cannot meet these timescales, we will explain the reasons and propose a new completion date to the Customer.

If your complaint cannot be resolved within this timeframe, or to your satisfaction, or if you do not accept a deferred date, you may be able to refer the matter to the FCA or the FOS for further review.

Acknowledgement

When we receive your complaint, we will acknowledge it in writing within 24 hours (business days are Monday–Friday, excluding bank holidays). This written acknowledgement will:

• Explain our complaints process.
• Confirm your right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) if you are not satisfied, with our assessment and ruling.
• Tell you who is handling your complaint within Unity Link Financial Services Limited and how to contact them (usually our Complaints Manager).

Initial Response

If your complaint is going to take more than three business days to resolve, we will send an initial response, which will:

• Explain the steps we are taking to investigate your complaint.
• Share any findings so far.
• If appropriate, make an offer of redress.

This letter will again remind you of your rights, who is handling your complaint, and how to contact them.

Complaints Resolved/Settled within Three Business Days

If your complaint is resolved within three business days, we will send you a Summary Resolution Communication. This communication will:

• Refer to the fact that the complainant has made a complaint and informs them that we now consider the complaint resolved to their satisfaction
• Demonstrate a clear calculation method for compensation, if any is being offered
• Tell the complainant that if they subsequently decide that they are dissatisfied with the resolution of the complaint they may be able to refer the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service; within six months
• Indicates whether Unity Link consent to waive the relevant time limits; where we have discretion in such matters
• Provide the website address of the Financial Ombudsman Service
• Refer to the availability of further information from the Financial Ombudsman Service's website

Further Acknowledgement

In the situation whereby the complainant responds to the Initial Response, UnityLink Financial Services Limited will acknowledge receipt of your response within 5 business days.

Holding Response

If UnityLink Financial Services Limited is unable to conclude the investigation and provide a Final Response to the complaint, then UnityLink Financial Services Limited will issue a Holding Response. The purpose of this Holding response is to:

• Explain why UnityLink Financial Services Limited cannot provide a Final Response
• Outline what UnityLink Financial Services Limited is doing to progress your complaint.

UnityLink Financial Services Limited will provide an estimated timeframe for our next update.

Invite you to speak personally with our Company's Managing Director if needed, ensuring your complaint receives the highest priority, in the instances where the compliant cannot be fully resolved through normal investigative processes.

Final Response

Once UnityLink Financial Services Limited has completed its investigation, UnityLink Financial Services Limited will send a Final Response, which will include:

• A summary of the outcome of our investigation.
• It may also include a final offer of redress, if appropriate.
• Clearly state that it is the final response.
• Provide information on how to contact the FOS if the complaint has not been resolved to your satisfaction, or if the offer of redress is considered insufficient or inappropriate.

Timescales:

UnityLink Financial Services Limited will send its final response within 15 business days (or 35 business days in exceptional circumstances) after the day on which the PSD complaint was received, or by the end of 8 weeks after the receipt of a non-PSD complaint, or 4 weeks after rejection of an offer of redress (where applicable).

This may not always be possible, as sometimes the complexity of the complaint may require more time to investigate fully.

We will always abide by regulatory guidelines in relation to a complaint and, as such, we will always ensure that complainants are kept informed about their complaint and our activities in response to their complaint.

Monitoring Complaints

UnityLink Financial Services Limited is required by the FCA to keep detailed documentation on individual complaints. We are required to report relevant complaints to the FCA and to our Insurer on a regular basis. Private information will not be shared with any 3rd parties and we comply with the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018. These details will usually include as a minimum:

• The nature, date, and method of communication of the complaint
• The complainant's details
• How the complaint was dealt with (outcomes)
• Whether the complaint was upheld or refuted
• Whether the complaint was closed (addressed to complainant's satisfaction) or whether it remains open and outstanding
• What financial redress or other significant outcome resulted from the complaint

Ultimate Redress

If, after contacting all parties the complainant remains dissatisfied with the outcome of the complaint then they may seek redress through the FOS and ultimately the courts if they so wish.

In each instance, we would record upon the complaint file what advice was provided and we would reclassify the complaint to note that it has been 'Investigated but not resolved'. These complaints are considered fully investigated by Unity Link Financial Services Limited.

After our final response, if you're still unhappy, you can escalate your complaint to the free Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), who will consider if we've resolved your complaint appropriately.

You can contact them by:

• Writing to: Financial Ombudsman Service, Exchange Tower, London E14 9SR
• Calling: 0800 023 4567
• Completing their online complaint form at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk