Consumer watchdog slams legal sector as most clients remain clueless on how to lodge complaints
The legal profession faces a damning rebuke after its consumer watchdog revealed widespread ignorance among clients about how to complain. The Legal Services Consumer Panel expressed “deep concern” as a new survey exposed that just a quarter of clients fully understand how to challenge poor service.
According to the panel’s latest tracker survey, only 51% of clients who used a lawyer in the past two years knew how to make a complaint. Even more troubling, fewer than half of those aware—just 48%—would approach the law firm directly as required before escalating matters.
The survey, based on responses from 3,633 adults who had engaged legal services within two years, paints a bleak picture. A staggering 28% said they felt uncertain about how to complain, while 21% admitted they had no idea where to start.
The findings arrive as the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) considers whether firms should be forced to provide clients with complaint guidance not just at the start, but again at the end of legal instructions. The consumer panel’s intervention piles pressure on the regulator to act decisively and ensure clients aren’t left in the dark.
Embed from Getty Images“Consumers should not feel disillusioned or ignored when they raise complaints,” said Tom Hayhoe, chair of the Legal Services Consumer Panel. “It is vital that legal service providers develop robust mechanisms for resolving issues fairly, swiftly and transparently. Recent scandals in the legal sector have highlighted how important complaints intelligence can be.”
Hayhoe threw his support behind proposals from the legal ombudsman to standardise complaints handling, an idea the panel has long championed. Without uniform standards, many clients face a confusing and frustrating process that leaves grievances unaddressed.
The tracker survey also uncovered worrying gaps in client knowledge about the Legal Ombudsman’s role. Just 55% of respondents found it easy to access ombudsman information when researching legal help. The panel insists such details should be “easily gleaned” from law firms’ websites and marketing materials.
“It is the service provider’s responsibility to make this information accessible, alongside their own complaints’ procedures,” the panel stressed. “Regulators must ensure they do so in an accessible format.”
Under current rules, the Legal Ombudsman cannot investigate complaints until the firm itself has first dealt with the issue. But the panel warned that many clients avoid complaining to their lawyers altogether due to mistrust or fear of repercussions.
Among those reluctant to complain, 33% cited a lack of trust in their firm to handle the complaint properly. Another 32% feared the process would drag on too long. Meanwhile, 28% worried that lodging a complaint might inflate their bill, and 14% struggled simply to reach their service provider.
The watchdog slammed the profession’s culture, stating that the willingness to invite and handle feedback remains “clearly lacking.” The reluctance of clients to complain directly reflects deep-rooted flaws in the profession’s accountability structures.
In a further blow to the sector, the panel criticised the ongoing failure to collect data on first-tier complaints. Without transparent data, it argued, regulators cannot properly monitor how firms handle grievances or protect vulnerable clients from mistreatment.
The panel urged regulators to start collecting and publishing data on first-tier complaints, calling for greater transparency across the entire legal sector. It also demanded that law firms adopt standardised protocols to ensure consistent, fair handling of every client complaint.
As regulatory discussions continue, pressure mounts on the SRA to impose stricter obligations. For thousands of legal clients, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Without swift reforms, many ri
