Financial Ombudsman Complaints UK: Step-by-Step Guide

Overview

The Financial Ombudsman Service is a statutory body set up under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 to settle individual disputes between consumers and financial businesses operating in the UK. It is funded by the financial industry through levies and case fees, but it operates independently of the firms it investigates and of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Using the service costs the consumer nothing. The Ombudsman looks at complaints about a wide range of regulated activities, including current accounts, credit cards, mortgages, loans, pensions, investments, insurance policies, payment protection, and consumer credit agreements. It can also consider complaints about poor service, errors, delays, and unfair treatment.

Decisions are made by assessing what is fair and reasonable in the individual circumstances, taking into account the law, regulator rules, industry codes, and good practice. If you accept a final decision from an Ombudsman, it becomes legally binding on the financial firm. If you reject it, you keep your right to take the matter to court instead.

Key steps

1. Complain to the firm first. Before the Ombudsman can get involved, you must give the financial business a chance to put things right. Put your complaint in writing, set out clearly what went wrong, explain the impact on you, and say what you want the firm to do. Keep a dated copy of everything you send.
2. Wait for the firm's response or the 8-week deadline. Regulated firms are generally required to issue a final response within 8 weeks. If they send a final response sooner and you disagree with it, you can escalate straight away. If 8 weeks pass without a proper answer, you can take the matter to the Ombudsman without waiting any longer.
3. Check eligibility and time limits. The Ombudsman can only look at complaints that fall within its jurisdiction. There are strict time limits, usually six months from the firm's final response and a longer backstop running from when you first knew of a problem. Check the current rules on the FOS website before you file.
4. Gather your evidence and build a timeline. Pull together statements, letters, emails, call notes, contracts, policy documents, and anything that shows what happened and when. A clear chronological timeline is often the single most useful thing you can prepare. Note down the financial loss or distress you have suffered and how you worked it out.
5. Submit the complaint and engage with the investigator. You can complain online, by post, or by phone. An investigator will review the file, ask both sides for information, and usually issue a view first. If either party disagrees, an Ombudsman will make a final decision, which becomes binding on the firm only if you accept it.

Common questions