Should You Contact a Client After a Complaint Is Made?
By Jaime G. Miralles — BABCP Accredited CBT Therapist & CBT Accredited Clinical Supervisor and Meta Supervisor
TL;DR It’s natural to want to reach out and clarify things directly with a client after a complaint, but doing so can unintentionally complicate matters or be interpreted as coercive or defensive. Contact your regulatory body and your professional indemnity insurer first, and never alter your original notes.
Key takeaways
- Contacting a client directly after a complaint can be interpreted as coercive or defensive, even with good intentions.
- Contact your regulatory body and your professional indemnity insurer straightaway.
- Never alter, amend, or rewrite your notes after receiving a complaint.
- Keep your response objective, professional, and focused on clinical rationale.
- You can still continue practising in most cases while this is worked through.
Why reaching out feels like the instinctive thing to do
This is a question I get asked often. Someone wants to reach out to the client, clarify a misunderstanding, offer soothing words, maybe even apologise. It’s a completely understandable instinct, wanting to make things right directly.
Contacting the person directly may have another impact than the one you intend. You may be unintentionally complicating matters, breaching procedure, or having your outreach interpreted as coercive, defensive, or even an attack. Even when your intention is simply to clarify or reach a resolution, it’s likely to land very differently once a formal process is underway.
Contact your regulatory body first, every time. Contact your professional indemnity insurer straightaway too, and let them know about the complaint. They’ll provide legal guidance and are likely to appoint a handler who advises you on what to do, including how — or whether — to communicate at all.
You cannot alter, amend, or rewrite your notes after receiving a complaint. Doing so can catastrophically affect your case, and regulatory panels view this as a very serious issue. You can, and should, carefully review your original notes, your initial contract, and your communication history to refresh your memory and organise a clear chronological timeline for your reference and for your insurer — but the original record stays exactly as it was.
When you do need to write a response, keep it objective, professional, and matter-of-fact. Focus strictly on clinical rationale and facts rather than emotional defence. No counter-attacks, no emotional language. This is exactly the kind of thing worth talking through in supervision before you send anything, so you’re responding from a clear place rather than a reactive one.
Should I contact a client directly after a complaint is made?
It’s generally best not to. Even well-intentioned contact can be interpreted as coercive or defensive, or unintentionally complicate the process. Contact your regulatory body first.
Can I change my notes after a complaint is made?
No. You must never alter, amend, or rewrite your original notes — doing so can seriously damage your case.
Who should I contact first after receiving a complaint?
Your regulatory body and your professional indemnity insurer, straightaway.
How should I write my formal response to a complaint?
Objectively and professionally, focused on clinical rationale and facts rather than emotional language or defensiveness.
Before you respond to anything, it’s worth talking it through in supervision so you’re acting from a clear head, not a reactive one. Find out more about my BABCP clinical supervision here.
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