The Channel Islands Financial Ombudsman (CIFO) has released its annual report and accounts for 2020.
Chair David Thomas commented: “2020 was the fifth full year of CIFO’s operation, resolving complaints about financial services fairly and impartially as an informal alternative to the courts. By the end of 2020, over 3,000 complaints had been referred to the office since its inception in late 2015.
"As for many customer-facing operations, this was a challenging year for CIFO with a transition to remote working, a 19% increase of in-mandate complaint volumes, and complaint themes that reflected the challenges facing financial consumers and their Channel Islands-based providers during Covid-19.
"With the issuing of this report, CIFO continues its commitment to transparency by publishing, for the first time, summary complaints statistics with the financial services providers named.”
Key points
• CIFO resolved 168 in-mandate complaints – 74% (124) were resolved with CIFO using mediation to bring the complainant and the financial services provider to an agreed solution, the other 26% (44) required the full powers of the ombudsman to issue a binding decision.
• Slightly more than half of the resolved in-mandate complaints were in favour of the customer (57%), with 43% resolved in favour of the financial services provider.
• Current accounts continue to be the most complained about type of product or service, followed by money transfer, investments, health insurance, stocks and shares, life insurance and private pension products.
• The top four issues in complaints referred to CIFO were: poor administration or delay; fees/charges; refusal of service; and non-payment of insurance claims.
• During 2020, CIFO received 409 new complaints – 225 new case files were opened for investigation (those within CIFO’s remit to review). Of the 194 complaints that did not become cases, 157 were outside CIFO’s remit, while 37 were withdrawn by the complainant.
• To view the CIFO Annual Report click here