Shola, a diligent and hardworking employee, realises that his former company had wrongfully manipulated his pension. He reaches out to the company hoping that this was all a mistake. However, after several emails and calls to the management, he has yet to hear back from them.
His biggest fears are confirmed when HR responds that there is nothing the company can do about his issue. For Shola, this simply means that the company is unwilling to address a problem they created much less rectify it. He contacts the Financial Ombudsman Service and in a short time, the issue is resolved.
About the Financial Ombudsman Service
As in Shola’s case, things don’t always go right when dealing with corporate entities. Sometimes, these companies or professionals simply decide to stand in the wrong. This is where an external mediator such as the Financial Ombudsman Service becomes needed.
The Financial Ombudsman Service, or FOS, is a conflict resolution service offered by a public organisation in the United Kingdom.
The company itself is called the Financial Ombudsman Service. This name also serves to describe the company’s service which concerns investigating, reporting, and settling complaints arising between financial service providers and customers.
How the Financial Ombudsman Service Works
The Financial Ombudsman Service works as a free and independent service. Its process can be simplified in three steps:
Receive Complaint
The conflict resolution process at FOS begins when an individual or company makes a formal complaint about another individual, company, or service which they have been in business with. Just so you know, the entity making a complaint is referred to as the complainant. On the other hand, the entity accused in the complaint is referred to as the defendant.
Each complaint is treated as unique and important. But this does not mean the FOS will rush into handling every case that is tabled before it.
What the organisation does first is to determine if the complaint falls under the type of cases it handles. See the section below this one to find out what type of complaints are handled by the ombudsman service.
Once the type of complaint is confirmed, the FOS will either proceed with the application (if the complaint is similar to what it handles) or reject it (if the complaint is outside its jurisdiction). The application will move to the next phase if it is accepted.
Investigate the Circumstances
At this point, the complainant is required to give their side of the story. They’ll describe the problem between them and the entity they are complaining about. What exactly happened, who did what, and who didn’t do what - all the little details matter.
Investigators won’t just believe one party without hearing from the second party. So, they will approach the defendant to hear what they have to say about the complaint.
A fair and transparent investigation will then be launched into the complaint. This investigation is handled by case handlers who work for the Financial Ombudsman Service. The essence of the investigation is to understand if relevant steps were taken to prevent the case from escalating in the first place. Also, the investigation will review each side of the story against any solid evidence.
Apply Suitable Resolution
Findings from the investigation by the FOS case handlers will be made available to the defendant and complainant. The case handlers will then determine what they think is a fair and suitable resolution to the complaint or problem.
If both parties are appeased by how the case handlers resolved their problem, the complaint will be officially closed. Otherwise, the complaint will move beyond the case handlers to be treated by the ombudsman service.
Apply Ombudsman Service
The Ombudsman service is sort of a supreme court. It is the final point of redress for financial service complaints. The service operates by looking at the results of a case handler’s investigation. Next, it will review the resolution made to determine if it was suitable or not.
If found to be unsuitable, the ombudsman service will determine a better way to fairly and completely resolve the problem. Its decision is always final.
Complaints Addressed by the Financial Ombudsman Service Addresses
It turns out that the FOS services both financial services businesses and its customers.
What this means is that financial services companies can make complaints about their customers. And on the other hand, customers can complain about financial service companies. The type of complaint addressed for each of these unique customers is different. Here’s what they are:
Fraud and Scams
Whether you have issues with debt collecting, credit broking, guarantor loans, home credit, logbook loans, payday loans, unaffordable lending, or car finance; the Financial Ombudsman Service can help resolve them.
Insurances
A variety of insurance-related complaints are also handled by the FOS.
Pensions and Annuities
The Financial Ombudsman Service receives a lot of complaints bordering on pensions and annuities.
This involves personal and workplace pensions. It also usually involves pensions started by an individual and those started by a company on behalf of an individual or the company’s staff.
PPI
Complaints about PPI or Payment Protection Insurance are addressed by the Financial Ombudsman Service. According to the organisation, the most common type of complaint in this category is from people who think they’ve been mis-sold PPIs.
COVID-19 Related Problems
Cases related to COVID-19 suspicions, tests, quarantine, and treatment are addressed.
Banking and Payments
Resolving financial complaints regarding banking and payments involves considering the terms and conditions of an account. Additionally, the ombudsman service might look at what was done for a complainant if they are having financial difficulty.
Complaints about:
Bank accounts (opening, closure, charges etc.)
Cheques and bankers’ drafts
Disputed transactions
Direct debits
IT failure
Packaged bank accounts
Investments
Investment issues relating to the following are also resolved and carefully treated by the FOS:
Stocks and shares
Savings endowments
Property funds
Whole-of-life policies
Unregulated collective investment schemes
Spread betting and contracts for difference
lifetime ISAs
Capital-protected structured investments
Mortgages
Many different types of mortgage problems are addressed by the FOS. This includes:
Early repayment charges
Equity release
Financial difficulties with mortgages
Interest-only mortgages
Mortgage arrears and charges
Mortgage shortfall
Interest applied to mortgage
Mortgage underfunding
Valuations and surveys
Case Fees
The Financial Ombudsman Service offers three free services to each user every year. Subsequently, a fee of £750 applies for any new complaint made by a user within the same year.
This means that if you bring four complaints to the FOS in the year 2024, the first three cases will be conducted free of charge. However, the fourth case will cost you £750. Once a new year begins, you’ll have another chance to have three cases resolved for free.
Region Served
The Financial Ombudsman Services actively operates in the United Kingdom. Companies which exist or operate partly or fully in the UK are, therefore, subject to the dictates of the ombudsman service.
Contact and Directions
Whether you’re visiting in-person or reaching out online, there are many ways to access the FOS for complaints and redress.
Opening Hours
If you need to reach the FOS, you will have to do so within their opening hours. Luckily, the organisation also works one day during the weekend. The following are the opening hours:
Monday to Friday: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Location of the Financial Ombudsman Service Office
The Financial Ombudsman Service office is located in the United Kingdom. Precisely, it is at Exchange Tower, London, E14 9SR, United Kingdom.
The office is situated close to the Millwall Inner Harbor and adjacent to the ARK Canary Wharf.
Other Contact Methods
Customers hoping to reach the Financial Ombudsman Service office can do so through various methods.
Consumer helpline:
0800 023 4567 (Lines open from 8.00 am to 5.00 pm, Monday to Friday)
Consumer helpline:
0300 123 9123 (Lines open from 8.00 am to 5.00 pm, Monday to Friday)
Fax: 020-7964-1001
Email: complaint.info\@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
Conclusion
Know anyone who has a complaint about a financial service that they were in business with? The Financial Ombudsman Service is always open to resolving such issues.