How to complain about a private doctor or clinic in England

Katerina Galkina · EN · 07/10/2026

Start with the clinic's complaints procedure and identify who funded the treatment. A private organisation may also deliver NHS-funded care, which follows a different route from wholly private treatment. Arrange medical help for complications before pursuing the complaint.

Gather evidence and define the outcome

Keep the contract, consent, treatment plan, invoices, correspondence, dates and clinical documents. Request relevant records. Set out verifiable facts, their impact and the outcome sought: explanation, record correction, a specified refund or process improvement.

Contact the official clinic complaints manager, obtain acknowledgement and a response timeframe. Do not publish other people's details or your complete medical record in public reviews.

Complete the internal stages

Request a written final response and escalation instructions. ISCAS subscribers have provider investigation, internal review and independent stage 3. The usual initial complaint timeframe in this process is six months, with possible exceptions; establish applicable deadlines promptly. ISCAS: complaints process ↗.

If an answer is incomplete, identify specific unanswered questions. Insurer correspondence is not automatically a complaint to the clinic: pursue both processes if necessary.

Choose the appropriate external body

ISCAS stage 3 applies to subscribing providers after earlier stages. It is not available for every private practice. Private dentistry has the Dental Complaints Service, and optical services have separate arrangements. NHS-funded treatment may follow the NHS complaints route. CQC: where to complain ↗.

CQC accepts information about safety and quality in regulated English services, but does not pursue your individual complaint or award refunds. CQC registration does not make it the adjudicator for every financial dispute.

Separate complaints from harm claims

ISCAS can address complaint handling and certain goodwill remedies, but does not award clinical-negligence compensation. For significant medical harm, obtain an independent medical assessment and individual legal advice; do not wait for lengthy correspondence to end before checking claim deadlines.

Retain all final responses and subsequent care records. For providers in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, use the relevant regulator and local arrangements rather than England's CQC.