Legal Ombudsman Employee Reviews for Investigator

Staff turnover is high - this is because a lot of the managers fail to see that micro managing people just doesn’t work. The managers always focused on the negative rather than the positive. There are a lot of inconsistencies in advice given when you are training. The flexible working was amazing, and there are some lovely people that work there.

Pros

Flexible working, some of the staff

Cons

Poor management, micro managed, inconsistent

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If you value your mental health, don't

Investigator (Current Employee) - Birmingham, West Midlands - 23 April 2023

The organisation is toxic from the top. Senior management don't listen to those at the bottom, everyone contradicts everyone else, targets are ridiculous and spreadsheet managers want to know dates and time of when you are planning to do something and then use it to challenge you if you haven't done it. Life happens isn't a good enough excuse. The company refuse to acknowledge and accept the union, in favour of a dormant staff council. Pay rises are applied for in January, agreed in April and not paid until December. The company think its acceptable to not have anyone working in HR for over a year, so staff holiday allowances are incorrectly calculated, HR requests are ignored, staff are paid incorrectly with no explanation why. The company regularly take on a high number of investigators, 3 or 4 times a year but fail to address the attrition and why people leave. Just don't do it.

Pros

40/60 wfh, flexi time

Cons

Unreasonable management, unreasonable processes, unreasonable targets.

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a mistake.

Investigator (Current Employee) - Cardiff, Cardiff - 18 April 2023

What is the best part of working at the company?The end of the day. It's awful.What is the most stressful part about working at the company?The overbearing administration, there are so many processes and procedures you can't do your job and the purpose of it all is lost.What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Toxic, inconsistent, unreliable.What is a typical day like for you at the company?Stressful and frustrating really.

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Could be a great job but the management want too much from you and it can only be this fast paced by cutting corners and not investigating properly.

Legal Ombudsman, Investigator. (Former Employee) - Birmingham - 4 January 2023

They have too much backlog of work and put on staff to work faster and faster. The management expect far too much of the individual. The management do not take into consideration that we have to rely on others for evidence. Too much red tape. Management are mean and non understanding.

Pros

Non

Cons

Lots

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Avoid at all costs

Investigator (Current Employee) - Birmingham - 10 June 2022

The most toxic organisation I have ever experienced. Micromanagement, constant pressure to close cases and if you don't fit in, they will manage you out. There is a constant turnover of staff and for good reason. The job will take over your life, it's normal to see staff still logged on at 11pm. Management are out of touch and don't listen. They refuse to recognise a trade union and instit everything is going well even though so many staff are unhappy.

Pros

Flexi time

Cons

Micromanagement and lack of support

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Insights into Legal Ombudsman

Based on 11 survey responses

What people like

Ability to learn new things
Time and location flexibility

Areas for improvement

General feeling of work happiness
Overall satisfaction
Trust in colleagues

A truly soul destroying workplace.

Complaints Investigator (Former Employee) - Birmingham - 29 May 2021

Very little support once in the role. The management are oblivious to the workforce and are only interested in stats. Many people are depressed there.

Pros

The water is clean

Cons

Poor management. No on job support. Poor work life balance.

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Loved it

Investigator (Former Employee) - Birmingham - 4 July 2020

I loved working here really had great training and learnt a lot. Managers are great really look after staffs health and well being. Great learnt how to deal with irate clients and negotiate settlement .

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Don't work there.

Investigator (Former Employee) - Birmingham, West Midlands - 22 March 2020

No moral on the office floor, staff are so stressed with the ridiculous workload that is unachievable even by the best performers. There are a lot of staff off with stress and the management are awful.

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Awful

Investigator (Former Employee) - Birmingham - 29 October 2019

Just toxic. Reel you in with a nice sounding job and benefits but the reality is its more like a sales driven environment than a mediation service for the public. They portray themselves as champions of disability and mental health awareness but if you have any health conditions, good luck getting support. They will make life very difficult for you. I've never seen management or a HR department this shocking before

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A horrible place for Legal Investigators

Legal Investigator (Current Employee) - Birmingham, West Midlands - 7 August 2019

I have been a Legal Investigator for many years here at LeO. It started off great! The investigations were interesting, challenging and most importantly as investigator it was YOUR investigation! Things have taken a horrible turn over the last couple of years and now internal reviews make the job a nightmare! Every call, letter, email, decision, thought is directed to what a senior colleague would want! An investigator is no longer and investigator! You’re merely the mouthpiece of senior staff and forced to say and do things you don’t agree with. The job is full of duplication and administration! Ridiculously unrealistic targets! Horrible passive aggressive team managers! No working from home! Annual leave refused for no reason! It’s a nightmare! The job is very difficult and underpaid! Avoid this place! You WILL regret working here.

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Good place to work, challenging roles

Legal Assessor / Investigator (Current Employee) - Birmingham - 4 September 2017

The role is very demanding and can be quite stressful. You have your own caseload and regular cases and need to work through these. The hardest part is reviewing evidence, forming a view on the service provided by the lawyer and proposing an appropriate remedy.

Pros

Flexible working, Home working

Cons

Role is challening, cases come non stop so it's quite relentless

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Legal Investigation

Legal Ombudsman - Investigator (Former Employee) - Birmingham - 22 May 2016

A company that required me to deal with individuals involved in highly sensitive cases. Resolution required an amicable solution, confirmed by a legal document.

Pros

Wage

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Interesting work but little opportunity for advancement

Investigator (Current Employee) - Birmingham - 8 February 2016

The work is interesting and it allows you to develop you analytical and report writing skills. There is however little opportunity for advancement and a large work load.

Pros

Flexible working hours and home working

Cons

Large workload and little opportunity for advancement

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Productive Workplace

Investigator (Former Employee) - Birmingham - 20 December 2012

My role involved investigating complaints of poor service by legal practitioners. I collated evidence of this from individuals and opinions from their legal entities, perusing all available evidence and deciding upon a resolution to the complaint.I managed my own caseload and took ownership for my clients.

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