The power to settle financial complaints.
The power to settle financial complaints.
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18 December 2007
the Financial Ombudsman Service today announces a number of new appointments to its non-executive board of directors
18 December 2007
Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Kitty Ussher MP, today confirmed that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) is to regulate travel insurance sold along with a holiday from 1 January 2009 - with consumers to be given access to the Financial Ombudsman Service
18 December 2007
includes:
[issue 66 - PDF version opens in new window]
5 December 2007
4 December 2007
David Cresswell of the ombudsman service interviewed on BBC2 Working Lunch - about the ombudsman approach in disputes involving bank accounts frozen because of suspicious transactions
3 December 2007
latest feedback to our 3-minute online survey shows that:
22 November 2007
our latest training-day for front-line consumer advisers – including trading standards officers, debt advisers and citizens advice workers etc – takes place today in Cambridge in partnership with Bedfordshire Trading Standards
21 November 2007
Jane Hingston, lead ombudsman for banking and credit, chairs the 19th annual conference of the Money Advice Liaison Group (MALG) in London – launching the voluntary MALG Mental Health Awareness Guidelines (available to download from the Money Advice Trust's website), aimed at helping consumer advisers, creditors and debt-collecting agencies in their work with consumers with mental health problems who are in financial difficulty
17 November 2007
David Cresswell, head of communications at the ombudsman service, interviewed on the BBC1 breakfast show about the ombudsman's role in settling disputes involving direct debits [see our regular newsletter, ombudsman news, for more information about the ombudsman's approach to disputes involving the direct debit guarantee and confusion about direct debits and standing orders]14 November 2007
the ombudsman service joins 220 exhibitors at London's Earls Court for the Mortgage Business Expo - the major trade-fair for brokers and financial advisers, covering residential mortgages, commercial property finance, equity release and secured lending
9 November 2007
7 November 2007
over 1,000 consumers from 88 countries overseas brought complaints about UK financial services and products to the Financial Ombudsman Service last year - and we handled disputes during the year in 20 languages from Arabic to Vietnamese
30 October 2007
The ombudsman service joins over 70 exhibitors - covering pensions & savings, investment, mortgages and technology - at one of the key events for people working in financial services in the north of England
26 October 2007
Martin Lewis interviews Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, about disputes involving payment-protection insurance (PPI) - on ITV's Tonight with Trevor McDonald show
[see our consumer factsheet on payment protection insurance - opens in PDF format]
25 October 2007
includes:
[issue 65 - PDF version opens in new window]
20 October 2007
BBC Radio 4 Money Box interviews:
19 October 2007
complete our 3-minute online survey - on how you rate this website and the ombudsman service in general
16 October 2007
following the announcement in September about Lord Hunt's independent review of the Financial Ombudsman Service and its relationship with external stakeholders, Lord Hunt today launches a debate on the openness and accessibility of the ombudsman - and publishes a detailed "call for evidence" report, seeking views and information from stakeholders.
15 October 2007
the latest in our series of quick guides for businesses - giving a brief overview of the complaints procedures that all businesses with a standard consumer-credit licence need to have in place
12 October 2007
the ombudsman service - in partnership with Asian media-network ZEE - continues work to widen awareness in the Asian communities of its impartial role in settling financial disputes
[see our page in the Diwali/Eid issue of ZEE magazine - PDF version opens in new window]
11 October 2007
our latest training-day for front-line consumer advisers – including trading standards officers, debt advisers and citizens advice workers etc – takes place in Hove on 11 October, in partnership with Brighton and Hove City Council
28 September 2007
meet the ombudsman this weekend at the National Wedding Show (London Earl's Court, 28 to 30 September) - described as the UK's biggest wedding "department-store", with the focus on fashion, food and finance
26 September 2007
over 100 ombudsmen and representatives from financial dispute-resolution schemes in 30 countries gather in London this week - for the annual conference of the International Network of Financial Ombudsmen (INFO). Highlights include:
25 September 2007
as part of our outreach work with the consumer advice sector, we take part in the Citizens Advice annual conference
24 September 2007
22 September 2007
David Cresswell of the Financial Ombudsman Service interviewed on the BBC1 breakfast show about disputes involving payment-protection insurance
18 September 2007
includes:
[issue 64 - PDF version opens in new window]
12 September 2007
10 September 2007
as part of our outreach work with front-line consumer problem-solvers, the ombudsman service is at the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in Brighton this week – meeting employee representatives, union delegates and MPs, and promoting complaints prevention and dispute resolution in financial services
6 September 2007
Lord Hunt of Wirral engaged to lead independent review of the Financial Ombudsman Service and its relationship with external stakeholders
6 September 2007
our latest training-day for front-line consumer advisers – including trading standards officers, debt advisers and citizens advice workers etc – takes place in Belfast on 6 September, in partnership with the Northern Ireland Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment
1 September 2007
Emma Parker of the Financial Ombudsman Service talks about travel insurance disputes on the BBC1 breakfast show
30 August 2007
we publish the latest in our series of factsheets for consumers - covering a range of subject areas and specialist topics
24 August 2007
Tony King, lead ombudsman responsible for pensions-related disputes at the Financial Ombudsman Service since 2003, takes up the post of Pensions Ombudsman and Pension Protection Fund Ombudsman from 1 September - ahead of these separate ombudsman schemes combining, to create a single pensions jurisdiction within the Financial Ombudsman Service
15 August 2007
we take our exhibition stand to meet delegates at Citizens Advice Scotland annual conference at the Edinburgh Conference Centre
10 August 2007
abbreviations, acronyms and clarity for consumers
5 August 2007
Walter Merricks, chief ombudsman, reflects at the FSA's summer school on the role of the courts and the ombudsman - and their impact on complaints handling by financial services companies
1 August 2007
Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, interviewed on BBC Radio 4 You and Yours - about floods and insurance claims
28 July 2007
BBC Radio 4's Inside Money interviews chief ombudsman, Walter Merricks, about disputes involving critical illness insurance
26 July 2007
26 July 2007
David Cresswell from the ombudsman service talks on BBC Working Lunch - about why younger people don't seem to complain as much as older consumers
25 July 2007
includes:
20 July 2007
www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk is listed in the Daily Mirror as one of "the 101 websites that will help change your life"
19 July 2007
our latest regional training-event for front-line consumer advisers – trading standards officers, debt advisers and citizens advice workers etc – takes place in Hull
17 July 2007
12 July 2007
the ombudsman service consults on extending its "voluntary" jurisdiction - to be able to offer ombudsman cover to Europe-based businesses for all their financial services activities that would be covered by the ombudsman's "compulsory" jurisdiction if they were carried out from the UK
[PDF version of consultation paper opens in new window]
9 July 2007
the FSA and ombudsman are consulting on proposals which seek to make the rules on the jurisdiction and the operation of the ombudsman service clearer, shorter and easier to use
CP07/14: Dispute Resolution: the Complaints sourcebook – Further simplification and minor changes
5 July 2007
we take our exhibition stand to meet delegates at the annual conference of the Institute of Money Advisers - the professional body for specialist money-advisers providing free debt and money advice to consumers
02 July 2007
in his speech at the Association of Finance Brokers (AFB) annual dinner, Sir Christopher Kelly, ombudsman service chairman, dispels some urban myths about the ombudsman service
29 June 2007
visit the ombudsman at Beyond Boundaries Live – the lifestyle and action weekend for disabled people at Sandown Park racecourse on 29 and 30 June
27 June 2007
the ombudsman service launches a youth awareness-campaign at the Trading Standards' Young Consumers of the Year event - aimed at widening awareness across younger age-groups of the ombudsman's impartial role in settling disputes with banks, insurance companies and financial firms
[first time? ... feel small? ... misunderstood? – youth campaign posters open in PDF format]
26 June 2007
the government announces that FSA is to regulate all travel insurance - giving consumers of travel insurance sold along with a holiday access to the Financial Ombudsman Service26 June 2007
chief ombudsman, Walter Merricks, tells TV presenter and consumer campaigner, Dominic Littlewood, how the ombudsman service can help settle insurance disputes
26 June 2007
Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, takes part in debate on "consumer indebtedness" at the Trading Standards annual conference in Manchester – to be broadcast on Radio 4's You and Yours
20 June 2007
includes:
[issue 62 - PDF version opens in new window]
12 June 2007
visit the ombudsman exhibition stand at the BBC Good Homes Show - at the NEC Birmingham from 13 to 17 June5 June 2007
welcoming the findings of an independent review of the organisations involved in the regulation and protection of workplace pensions (Paul Thornton's "institutional review"), minister for pension reform James Purnell today announced that the government would be implementing the review's proposal to combine the Pensions Ombudsman and the Financial Ombudsman Service4 June 2007
our latest regional training-event for front-line consumer advisers - trading standards officers, debt advisers and citizens advice workers etc - takes place in Inverness on 6 June
30 May 2007
22 May 2007
18 May 2007
Chester Zoo's conference centre is the venue for our latest regional training-day for professional consumer-advisers – held in partnership with Cheshire Trading Standards
16 May 2007
visit our exhibition stand on 16 and 17 May – at the largest mortgage show for finance professionals in the North of England
8 May 2007
David Thomas, principal ombudsman, gives evidence [PDF version opens in new window] to the House of Lords' select committee on regulators – as part of the finance and pensions panel on consumer issues, involving Citizen's Advice, the Financial Services Consumer Panel and the Financial Ombudsman Service
[additional memorandum by the ombudsman to the committee opens in PDF format]
1 May 2007
we continue our series of regional events for professional consumer advisers - trading standards officers, money advisers and citizens advice workers etc - with a complaints-handling training day for local front-line problem-solvers in the Aberdeen area
27 April 2007
ombudsman takes part in consumer debt event – organised jointly by Money Advice Plymouth, Plymouth Citizens Advice Bureau and Plymouth City Council – aimed at helping Devon consumers in financial difficulty
27 April 2007
25 April 2007
includes:
[issue 61 - PDF version opens in new window]
23 April 2007
speech by Walter Merricks, chief ombudsman, at the FSA’s conference on the future of regulation
23 April 2007
department for constitutional affairs announces the start of full regulation for claims management companies – including commercial "no win, no fee" firms handling financial complaints for consumers
[see our frequently-asked-question on "do I need specialist help to complain" – for the ombudsman view of claims management companies]
16 April 2007
watch our new video-clip to our chief ombudsman, explaining how the Financial Ombudsman Service works and how we can help. This is part of our commitment to sharing information in a range of formats - written and spoken - to meet people's different needs:
16 April 2007
five recent stories showing how we've been able to help people with different kinds of problems and complaints
14 April 2007
Money Box interviews Walter Merricks, chief ombudsman, on new rights that borrowers have, under the Consumer Credit Act 2006, to complain to the ombudsman service
13 April 2007
see our online research resource to download the memorandum of understanding – setting out the operational relationship between the ombudsman and the FSA - as well as other official and legal documents relating to the ombudsman's powers and constitution
11 April 2007
Walter Merricks, chief ombudsman, interviewed by Watchdog about complaints to the ombudsman service relating to critical-illness insurance
11 April 2007
5 April 2007
29 March 2007
Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, interviewed by Chris Choi, ITV's consumer affairs editor, about bank-charge complaints - following the OFT's launch of its in-depth study into retail bank pricing
29 March 2007
includes:
[issue 60 - PDF version opens in new window]
23 March 2007
our final roadshow for consumer credit businesses pulls into London on 27 March - completing a tour covering 16 towns and cities across the UK and involving hundreds of the consumer-credit businesses set to come under the ombudsman for the first time from 6 April
14 March 2007
With just three weeks to go before the consumer-credit sector comes under the ombudsman for the first time, we take part in the credit-management convention organised by the Institute of Credit Management at London's Old Billingsgate on 14 March.
8 March 2007
The ombudsman joins 100 exhibitors - covering investments, pensions, mortgage and protection business - at Scotland's largest financial services trade-show, incorporating Mortgage Business Expo and Money Marketing Live
2 March 2007
Walter Merricks, chief ombudsman, talks to the Consumer Action Network about consumer activism, the response of big business, and the role of dispute-resolution schemes and ombudsmen
26 February 2007
our phone lines have been exceptionally busy over the last few days, so we're sorry if you've not been able to get through. Please try again later, when things are a little quieter. In the meantime, we hope you'll find some helpful information on our frequently-asked-questions pages
26 February 2007
includes:
[issue 59 - PDF version opens in new window]
21 February 2007
Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, on last night's Watchdog - explaining the ombudsman service's approach to settling disputes about bank charges
20 February 2007
see the latest factsheet in our series of quick guides for businesses covered by the ombudsman service
16 February 2007
Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, on Working Lunch to answer viewers' questions about mortgage endowment complaints
13 February 2007
meet the ombudsman this weekend at the ZEE carnival (London Olympia, 16-18 February) - the celebration of Asian lifestyle, presented by ZEE TV, the Asian media network
7 February 2007
Our tenth weekly roadshow for consumer-credit businesses takes us to Cambridge on 13 Feb – where we'll meet local businesses coming under the ombudsman for the first time from April 2007 when we'll be covering the consumer-credit sector
1 February 2007
as part of the independent review of the banking code and the business banking code, Jane Hingston – lead ombudsman for banking and credit - writes to the independent reviewer, Mike Young, with the ombudsman's views on areas of the banking codes that might be changed
30 January 2007
fraudulent emails claiming to be from the ombudsman service
28 January 2007
"Talk of the North" (DurhamFM/AlphaFM/SunFM) interviews David Cresswell from the ombudsman service on the ombudsman approach to settling disputes about bank charges
24 January 2007
the ombudsman service launches a pilot "awareness campaign" in the UK's Asian media - aimed at widening awareness in the community of the impartial role of the ombudsman in settling financial disputes
[our page in the spring issue of ZEE magazine - PDF version opens in new window]
20 January 2007
Tony Boorman, principal ombudsman, interviewed on Money Box about the ombudsman approach to disputed credit card and debit card transactions
12 January 2007
[PDF version opens in new window]
4 January 2007
Feedback from our survey of website users during December 2006 shows: