We are here to help seafarers of any nationality, religion, gender or sexuality whatever their problem, where ever they are in the world. Talking to us is easy because we speak a wide range of languages and can be contacted via: Email / Live Chat / Phone (call back option) / Facebook / SMS Text number / Skype / WhatsApp / Viber. We treat every contact confidentially and will do our best to help you. You can talk to us about anything whether it is a problem on board, concerns about your family, a health issue, or a request for general information. If you are feeling concerned about something and need some support, or if you just want to talk, we are here for you. We may need to ask for some personal information in order to help you (eg name, nationality, ship IMO number) but this will not be shared with anyone else unless you give us permission. SeafarerHelp is accredited with the Helplines Standard for best practice in helpline work. Complaints Procedure We take all complaints seriously as they provide us with opportunities to improve and maintain the high standards we strive to achieve. We recognise that we sometimes get things wrong. Your feedback will help us resolve mistakes faster and learn how we can do things better to improve quality and service user satisfaction. Our Complaints Procedure is available to those who use our SeafarerHelp services including those affected by our promotional materials. SeafarerHelp will respect your confidentiality and keep your complaint confidential. Any information about the complaint will usually only be shared with those who need to know in order to help resolve it. We will endeavour to resolve your complaints as promptly and amicably as possible. How to raise a complaint SeafarerHelp is operated by the International Seafarers Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN), a registered charity in England and Wales. If you have a complaint about the service that you have received from our SeafarerHelp team or if you have been affected by any SeafarerHelp promotional materials, you should contact the ISWAN Head of Operations and clearly state that you are making a complaint. You will need to explain exactly what your complaint is and what you would like to be done to resolve it, if it is upheld. Contact can be made by email, telephone or by letter direct to the ISWAN Head of Operations. The current Head of Operations is Ray Barker and his email address is: ray.barker@iswan.org.uk If you wish to make a complaint by telephone on +44 207 323 2737, state that you want to make a complaint and request a call back. Please note that although our phone is answered 24 hours per day, the Head of Operations normally works Monday to Friday and so you may have to give a date and time that you can be contacted. The Head of Operations will acknowledge receipt of your complaint and investigate it. The Head of Operations will provide an initial response within 10 days of receiving it. Within 20 days from the date the Head of Operations acknowledged receipt of your complaint, you will receive either: (a) a full response which adequately addresses the complaint; or (b) an explanation why the Head of Operations is not yet in a position to resolve the complaint and will indicate when you will receive a full response. We expect to be able to resolve most complaints within 20 days from the date we have acknowledged receipt. However, in exceptional circumstances e.g. when we need to conduct a more in-depth investigation or when we have to rely on information provided by others who are overseas we may not be able to meet that deadline.