Waterways Ombudsman
The Waterways Ombudsman is independent and unbiased and considers matters of complaints and dispute between British Waterways and its customers and visitors.
If you have completed the British Waterways Complaints Procedure you may wish to refer your complaint to the Waterways Ombudsman for consideration.
She does not make or influence our policy, and can only investigate specific complaints. There is no charge for using the services of the Ombudsman.
What the Ombudsman can investigate
The Ombudsman can investigate complaints from people who think that we are guilty of maladministration, ie inefficient or improper administration. This includes:
- doing something the wrong way
- doing something that should not have been done
- failing to do something that should have been done
Examples include unreasonable delay, bias, incompetence, neglect, arbitrariness, failure to follow proper procedures and making decisions without proper consideration. Simply disagreeing with a decision taken by us is not enough.
The Ombudsman can consider complaints of maladministration which:
- come from anyone who uses our canals, rivers, reservoirs, towpaths, land or buildings
- are about any of our activities, and concern things that have happened within the last two years
The Ombudsman cannot investigate personnel matters or cases that have been, or are being, considered by a court, or otherwise involve issues of legal interpretation which are not clear.
You must pass your complaint to the Ombudsman within six months of receiving the second response (at 'Corporate Level') from us. You should include full details of your complaint and copies of all correspondence between you and us. If you need help, the Ombudsman will tell you how to make a written complaint. You can ask a member of your family, your solicitor, a trade union representative or a voluntary body to make a complaint on your behalf. However, you have to pay any costs involved.
What will the Ombudsman do?
The Ombudsman will first let you know whether she can look into your complaint.
For a full investigation, the Ombudsman will ask us for all relevant letters and papers. Both you and we may also be asked to provide further information.
At the end of the investigation, the Ombudsman will write to you and us with her decision.
We must act on any recommendations made by the Ombudsman on a finding of maladministration. You do not have to accept the findings of the Ombudsman. You can still take your complaint to your MP or solicitor if you wish.
The Ombudsman may attempt to sort out the problem between you and us without undertaking a formal investigation.
The Ombudsman's findings
The Ombudsman's findings and our response will be published in the Ombudsman's Annual Report, but both will preserve the anonymity of complainants.
The report will be sent to the Inland Waterways Advisory Council and the Minister responsible for us. A summary of it will also appear in our Annual Report, which is laid before Parliament. You can get a copy of the Ombudsman's Annual Report from your local waterway office, by emailing enquiries.hq@britishwaterways.co.uk or from the Ombudsman herself.
Helpful Information
You can seek advice about using the Complaints Procedure and about contacting the Waterways Ombudsman from the Head of Customer Service or from the Ombudsman:
Hilary Bainbridge
The Waterways Ombudsman
PO Box 35
York
YO60 6WW
Tel: 01347 879075
Email: enquiries@waterways-ombudsman.org
Or visit the Waterways Ombudsman's website at www.waterways-ombudsman.org
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