COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE
Not Satisfied with the Service you Received?

The Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) is committed to preventing loss of life at sea and at the coast; continuously improving maritime safety, and protecting the marine environment  safer lives, safer ships, cleaner seas.

Our aim is to provide the best possible service at all times. We welcome feedback from our customers which tells us when we are getting things right, and just as importantly, enables us to focus on where we need to improve, so that we learn from our mistakes. We record and monitor all complaints and carry out regular reviews of our customer services.

Step 1
If you are not satisfied with the service from the MCA please get in touch with the person or section that you have been dealing with. They will be keen to put the matter right if they can. All our letters give the name and telephone number of the sender and usually a reference number. If you do not know how to contact us, please email infoline@mcga.gov.uk or use our Website.

We are confident that most concerns can be addressed satisfactorily at this first step. However, if you already feel that you have explored this avenue as far as you can, then please move to Step 2.

Step 2
However, if you are still not satisfied, you should write to the Customer Care Manager at either the appropriate regional office or at our Headquarters in Southampton:

Step 3
If you remain unsatisfied, you should write, including full details of previous correspondence, to our Chief Executive, Peter Cardy at the following address:

Maritime and Coastguard Agency
Bay 3/30
Spring Place
105 Commercial Road
Southampton
SO15 1EG

He will make sure that your complaint is thoroughly investigated.

Step 4
If you feel that your complaint has not been handled properly, you can ask us to refer the matter an independent adjudicator appointed by the Agency. The adjudicator is not in a position to review the decision reached by the Agency concerning your complaint, but will consider whether it has been handled in a fair, courteous and prompt manner.

And Finally…The Ombudsman
The Ombudsman (also called the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration) plays an important role as the final step on the complaints ladder, and provides a fully independent channel for reviewing complaints. If you want to complain to the Ombudsman, you should write to your MP about your complaint, and ask him or her to refer it to the Ombudsman.  

Usually, before you complain to the Ombudsman’s Office, they will expect you to have put your complaint to the Agency first, using our internal complaints procedure.

At every step, we will try to respond to your correspondence within 14 days of receipt.

MCA Complaints Procedure Leaflet - to download a copy please click here ( PDF Document 1.7 MB)