Steps to follow
- If you think your bank is treating you unfairly – eg overcharging you for a service or selling you a product without explaining the risks – your first move would be to complain to the bank itself.
- If you complain over the phone, make a note of who you spoke to and what they say.
- In many cases the complaints handler will try to brush off your complaint – don’t be bullied: insist that your case is reassessed.
- Before you make a complaint, it’s an idea to read up on your rights. Disputes about most banking services, for example, including current and savings accounts, Isas, debit/ credit card fraud, payment services, loans and overdrafts, will probably be covered by the Banking Code – a voluntary code of practice designed to promote good practice for financial providers.
- If you can’t get the matter sorted over the phone, write in with a formal complaint, making sure you head the letter or email as “Complaint” for clarity’s sake. This should include a summary of your problem, what you would like doing about it, plus dates and names of people you’ve talked to thus far.
- If the bank rejects your complaint or hasn’t responded within eight weeks your next port of call should be the Financial Services Ombudsman (FOS). This is a free service which hears complaints about most financial services products. You might have a bit of a wait before your problem is tackled though – anything up to nine months is possible.
- You can download a claim form from the FOS website or give them a call – make sure you explain your complaint clearly and fully and say how you’d like the problem resolved. Take notes of all communications with them.
- If the FOS can’t sort out the problem with informal discussions between you and the bank, an adjudicator issues a formal decision. The issue will pass to the ombudsman if either party appeals: his/ her decision is binding on the company, but not on you – you can take the matter to court if you want.
- Before you take the matter to court, get legal advice to see if it’s worth your while suing. If the amount in dispute is below £5,000 in England and Wales (£2,000 in Northern Ireland or £3,000 in Scotland) you can pursue the matter through the small claims system which is cheaper because you don’t need a solicitor. Anything above this amount will need to go to the full county court or High Court where things tend to get more costly, time-consuming and complicated.
What to watch out for
According to recent Which? research, more than 40% of the 2000 people surveyed said they had thought about complaining about a financial product - but almost a quarter never got round to it. It is worth making the effort though: the FOS ruled in favour of almost two-thirds of complainants in the first six months of 2009 and, with some big banks, the success rate was much higher.
Solicitor’s top tip
Since the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the banks in a test case on unauthorised overdraft charges (Office of Fair Trading v Abbey National plc & others [2009] UKSC 6), the FOS says it will not generally be able to help with cases that involve "template" or "standard letter" complaints about unauthorised overdraft charges. However, it says it will review each case on its merit to see whether there are any one-off circumstances that may apply so it is still worth complaining on this issue – especially if you’re a consumer suffering severe financial hardship which the bank charges are exacerbating.
Useful links
Free advice
Financial services ombudsman
Banking Code
About Small Claims
HM Courts Service
Court Room Advice
Collecting Debts
www.lawcentres.org.uk
www.citizensadvice.org.uk
www.communitylegaladvice.org.uk
www.lawworks.org.uk
Online services
Money Claim Online
Money Claim Manager
