Concerns and complaints about a CABE Member
Professional behaviour and conduct sit at the heart of the work of all building engineers. CABE’s Code of Professional Conduct and Guide to Ethical Professionalism set out clear standards for CABE Members to follow and against which concerns and complaints are measured.
The objective of CABE’s complaints process is to ensure that CABE Members are maintaining the highest professional standards and adhering to the Code of Professional Conduct. It does not provide for financial penalties against Members or the awarding of costs or financial redress to complainants.
All CABE Members are required to have a complaints handling procedure in place to help address and resolve difficulties and we recommend that you make the Member aware of your concerns to give them the opportunity to remedy the issue.
If you are unsatisfied with the outcome, you can submit a complaint via CABE’s online complaint form.
Report a concern or complaint
CABE’s complaints process enables you to raise concerns about individual Members of the Association with the objective of ensuring that professional standards are maintained, and that the Code of Professional Conduct is being adhered to.
If the individual, or company the individual is employed by, is regulated by other bodies e.g. the Building Safety Regulator or subjected to judicial oversight i.e. an expert witness on behalf of the court, you should first refer the complaint to
these higher authorities.
Once we have established if a complaint is valid and within our authority to investigate, we will act in accordance with our Disciplinary Procedures.
Concerns/complaints relating to matters:
For more about our complaints process, download CABE’s Complaint and Disciplinary Procedures – A Guide.
How we handle complaints
We will review the information provided and contact you to advise whether the complaint will be subject to a formal investigation by CABE.
Our primary interest is to:
- ensure that CABE Members are acting competently and conducting themselves in a professional manner
- establish if CABE Members have breached the CABE Code of Professional Conduct;
and
- decide whether it is necessary to impose sanctions in order to protect the public interest.
Please note: if your complaint is subject to litigation or arbitration, we will suspend any investigation until the litigation or arbitration has concluded.
CABE cannot:
- deal with concerns or complaints about anyone who is not a CABE Member (other than those who are claiming to be).
- pay compensation, or instruct a Member to do so
- determine whether a Member has acted negligently
- interfere with, or become involved in, civil or criminal court action
- deal with any matter where no evidence can be provided
- agree to requests for it to act as a Mediator or Arbitrator; or
- deal with complaints that concern most employment matters (e.g unfair dismissal)
Outcomes
In circumstances where a complaint has resulted in a sanction being imposed on a CABE Member, details will be published (in line with our Publication Policy)
in one issue of Building Engineer and on our Disciplinary Hearing Outcomes page.
Read the Sanctions Guidance for more information.
