Do you feel aggrieved by terms and conditions of your mortgage that you deem quite inequitable? Is your bank taking forever to resolve your clamor on unwarranted charges and fees? Are you disgruntled with the response of an insurance company, a financial services group, a bank or a quasi-bank institution to your complaint? If you have answered in the affirmative, you will be pleased to know that you can resort to another bastion to assert your rights as a business customer and protect your interests before heading to the courts – the Financial Ombudsman.
Not everybody may not have know about the Financial Ombudsman Services but this department has been instrumental in sorting out at least 250,000 disputes involving customers who are deeply displeased with the service of the banking industry, financial services groups, and other related businesses. If you are looking for a more expedient, inexpensive, and convenient alternative instead of seeking redress from the country’s justice system, here are some information that you need to know about the Financial Ombudsman and how you can request for their intervention.
Service and Coverage
The Financial Ombudsman is authorized to handle a myriad of financial issues, including those relating to investments, banking, debts and securities, credit cards, pawnbroking, advising, and other financial services and products. This department addresses your issues, primarily, by gathering relevant information from both parties to come up with fact-based, highly-objective decisions.
There is no such thing as res judicata or precedence with the Financial Ombudsman because their approach is largely based on a case-to-case basis. The investigation and fact-finding is typically done by phoning or writing the complaining party and the financial institution for the documents and records – thus, you no longer have to spend time and hard-earned money in adversarial, face-to-face conferences with the opposing party. If the Financial Ombudsman will decide against you after a careful assessment of all attending circumstances, you will be appraised why. However, if the decision will be in your favor, the Financial Ombudsman will enforce it by issuing an order against the institution to make the appropriate adjustments or corrections to your account.
Limitations
Since the Financial Ombudsman is not a court of law, you will not be able to cross-examine the institution’s representatives or personally examine company records. This department can only talk to both parties in the hope of coming up with a sound and fair solution – it does not exercise any judicial powers in pursuit of civil or criminal actions. Also, their decisions will not be legally binding – a party can always resort to the courts and pursue a formal action. Once a case is filed in court or if you are seeking for an indemnity in excess of £150,000, the Financial Ombudsman will no longer have any jurisdiction over your complaint.
Requisites and Process of Seeking Assistance
Before you seek the assistance of the Financial Ombudsman, a condition precedent that you should observe is first filing the complaint with the erring financial institution which has eight weeks to address your complaint. But if you are not quite discontented with their action, you have to file your complaint with the Financial Ombudsman within a period of 6 months. You can contact them at phone no. 0300 123 9 123 or through their website, www. financial-ombudsman.org.uk. You will be asked to provide some basic personal details, a summary of the dispute, and your account information. From then on, the accommodating and efficient officer will commence an investigation and come up with a speedy and fair decision. What’s more, the service is free for all customers! Do you have a complaint? Contact them now.