INFO Network

International Network of Financial Services Ombudsman Schemes

Fundamental principle

A financial services ombudsman scheme should publish details of:

• the scope of its jurisdiction
• its enquiry and complaint handling processes
• its powers
• the status of its decisions
• any effect on the complainant’s legal rights of using the ombudsman scheme
• what information is (or is not) kept confidential.

Effective approaches

Basics

The financial services ombudsman scheme publishes details of:

• its postal address, phone number, email address and website address
• the basis of its authority
• its decision makers, their method of appointment and term of office
• its membership of any national or international network.

Jurisdiction

The financial services ombudsman scheme publishes details of the scope of its jurisdiction, including:

• the financial services businesses that are covered
• the types of services that are covered
• whether or not that includes services provided cross-border
• whether or not the complainant must be a customer
• whether any businesses can complain and, if they can, what types of business
• any time limits within which a complaint must be brought to the ombudsman scheme
• any minimum or maximum value of complaints that the ombudsman scheme can handle
• any grounds on which the ombudsman scheme may decline to deal with a complaint that is in its jurisdiction.

Processes

The financial services ombudsman scheme publishes details of its enquiry and complaint handling processes, including:

• whether the complainant must first complain directly to the financial services business
• any requirements on how financial services businesses handle complaints
• anything else the complainant must do before referring a complaint to the ombudsman scheme
• whether or not the ombudsman scheme handles enquiries
• whether or not the ombudsman scheme uses negotiation/conciliation/mediation
• whether or not the ombudsman scheme actively investigates complaints
• the language(s) in which complaints can be submitted and can be handled
• whether or not bringing a complaint to the ombudsman scheme suspends any time limit for taking the complaint to court.

Powers

The financial services ombudsman scheme publishes details of its powers, including:

• any power to demand information or documents from either of the parties
• the basis on which complaints are decided — for example, fairness/equity
• any maximum limit to the amount of compensation it can recommend/award
• whether or not compensation is limited to financial loss
• whether or not compensation can carry interest until the date it is paid
• whether or not costs can be (and, if so, are likely to be) awarded
• whether or not the financial services business can be required to do anything else to put things right for the complainant
• whether or not the financial services business can be required to change its processes.

Status of decisions

The financial services ombudsman scheme publishes details of the status of its decisions, including:

• whether or not they are published
• whether or not they bind the financial services business
• if binding, how they can be enforced
• if non-binding, the percentage of complaints in which they are followed by financial services businesses
• if non-binding and not followed, whether there are consequences (e.g. publicity)
• whether or not they bind the complainant
• whether or not there is the possibility of review by, or appeal to, the courts.

Confidentiality

The financial services ombudsman scheme publishes details of whether or not:

• the identities of the parties are kept confidential
• other information about complaints is kept confidential
• a party can use information from the investigation/decision in subsequent court/arbitration proceedings.

Publication

These details are made publicly available:

• on the financial services ombudsman scheme’s own website
• in any other way appropriate in the relevant country.