How to complain about a care provider

The steps to take if you are unhappy with a care home, GP, dentist or homecare service, who to escalate to, and what to do if someone is at risk.

Published 2026-06-16 · A general guide, not legal, medical or financial advice.

If something is wrong with care, raising it clearly and in writing is usually the fastest route to a fix, and it helps protect other people too. There is a clear order to follow, and most issues are resolved at the first stage if you are specific about what happened and what you want done.

Step 1: complain to the provider

Every registered service must have a complaints procedure and must tell you how to use it. Put your complaint in writing, set out clearly what happened, when, and who was involved, say what outcome you want, keep a copy, and ask for a timescale for a response. Keep the tone factual; you are more likely to get a constructive reply, and a written record helps if you need to escalate.

Step 2: escalate if it is not resolved

• Adult social care (care homes, homecare, supported living): the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman can investigate complaints the provider has not resolved, whether the care is council-funded or privately paid.
• NHS services (GPs, dentists, hospitals): use the NHS complaints process first, then the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman if it remains unresolved.

Step 3: tell the CQC

The CQC cannot resolve an individual complaint or award compensation, but it uses what you report as evidence when it monitors and assesses a service. If several people raise the same concern, it can help trigger an assessment. Reporting concerns, including positive feedback, is one of the most useful things you can do for future residents and patients, and you can do it through the CQC website.

If someone is at immediate risk

Do not wait for a complaints process to run its course. Contact the local council's adult safeguarding team, who have a legal duty to investigate abuse or neglect, or the police in an emergency. You can raise a safeguarding concern about someone else, and you can do so anonymously if you prefer. It is always better to raise a concern that turns out to be minor than to stay silent about a serious one.

Getting support

This is general information, not legal advice. Age UK, Citizens Advice and the charity POhWER, which provides NHS complaints advocacy, can help you make a complaint effectively, and an advocate can be invaluable if you find the process daunting. CareRadar's own corrections and right-of-reply route is only for factual errors on our pages; complaints about the care itself should go to the provider and the bodies above.