Contacting the VCMS

The VCMS, funded by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, is a telephone service that assists both members of the public and profession to resolve disputes through mediation to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome for both parties. As such, the VCMS is free to use at the point of service. 

The VCMS is a mediation service, so we do not judge, take sides or penalise either party. We remain impartial to find a resolution. As a mediation process, the VCMS seeks to resolve your complaint fairly and quickly. The VCMS helps the veterinary practice and animal owner agree a resolution. We then ask the practice and the client to put the agreed resolution in place. 

The solution may be an apology, a refund, an offer of further treatment, a discretionary payment, an explanation of what has happened and why or that no further action on the part of the practice is required.

Please note, the VCMS team will not ask either party to send any payment via our service. 

We will:

• Listen to you to establish a clear picture of the complaint
• Identify the key issues of your concerns and what you are hoping to achieve by pursuing the complaint
• Obtain all the relevant information from the practice
• Talk to you and the practice to discuss possible solutions to resolve the complaint
• Help implement and conclude the complaint so both parties can move on
• At all stages of the process, we will keep you informed of what is going on
• Importantly, we will also ask you how we have done and listen to your feedback to continuously improve our service.

Please contact our teams through our official email (enquiries@vetmediation.co.uk) or call 0345 040 5834.