Complaining: How to get your way with financial failures
Being faced with a problem with insurance, a mortgage, an endowment or any financial product can seem overwhelming.
You may want to scream at your bank or insurance firm, but the best way to your complaint across is to stay calm and focused.
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) exists to settle individual disputes between consumers and businesses and sets out how to complain and get your side across, but it may be easier to start out with the firm you have a complaint against.
Mistakes and misunderstandings can happen with any kind of business. Things can usually be sorted out quickly and easily - once the business knows what's gone wrong.
Complaining can seem daunting - but it doesn't have to be.
Last year the FOS dealt with over half a million calls from consumers about a range of financial complaints from pet insurance to credit cards.
Most of these calls were resolved without the ombudsman service needing to get formally involved.
The FOS has now put forward some tips to ensure that your complaint is understood and taken seriously from the start:
- 1. What's the problem? Think about the things you want to complain about. Gather your letters, documents and anything related to the complaint together before you make contact.
- 2. Stay calm! No matter how upset you are, try to stay polite and calm. You will get the point across more clearly and effectively.
- 3. Write or phone? If you phone the company, make sure you note down the date, time and details of the person you speak to.
If you write, make sure you include important details like your policy or account number, the date and write "complaint" clearly at the top of your letter.
- 4. Keep it brief! It's always best to keep things brief and to the point.
Say what you are not happy with and how the business can resolve the problem. If you're writing, use bullet points and short paragraphs to break up your letter and keep a copy of anything you send.
- 5. Taking it higher. Remember that the business will have a complaints procedure that it has to follow. If a member of staff is unwilling to help, ask for the address of the customer relations department so you can take the matter further yourself.
If you aren't able to resolve your complaint with a financial business, the FOS may be able to help put things right.
The ombudsman service was set up by law as a free service for consumers. They look at both sides of a dispute and will weigh up all the arguments and tell you - and the firm - what they think.
Contact the FOS at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk or call the consumer helpline on 0845 080 1800.
The FOS also has a range of fact sheets covering how to complain on a range of topics from unauthorised overdraft charges, mortgage endowments, and payment protection insurance among other common problems.
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