Over half of Complaints Commissioner cases FCA related

The FCA  received 61 complaints, while a further 11 related to its predecessor the Financial Services Authority.

However none of the complaints were upheld, and in none of the cases did the Commissioner overturn the regulator’s own findings.

The large majority of the complaints claimed that the FCA’s regulatory regime was insufficiently rigorous, ranging from complaints about the FCA’s general policy in relation to loan interest rates through to allegations that the FCA had failed to act sufficiently firmly, or at all, in response to concerns.

But according to the Commissioner, the complainants were unable to demonstrate any good reason why they should be exempted from the requirements imposed upon other firms.

A number of complaints were excluded from the scheme relating to the performance of the FCA’s and FSA’s legislative functions (rules, guidance and policy).

In the large majority of the 38 cases which the Commissioner considered in the year, he upheld the regulator’s findings, and had no significant criticism of the way in which the complaint had been handled.

However in six cases, while not overturning the FCA’s decision, the Commissioner commented upon aspects of the way that the complaint had been handled. In general, the Commissioner’s concern was that the FCA had not given a sufficiently full explanation of the underlying rationale for the decisions which had been taken. The Commissioner said that this reflects a tendency to be over-cautious about admitting error, and to be too ready to exclude matters too early in the process.

A number of complainants were also unhappy with the introduction of rules relating to the Retail Distribution Review and the Mortgage Market Review. The Commissioner said that while some consumers will feel that they are being unfairly treated (as a result of having to pay a fee for financial advice or undergoing an enhanced affordability assessment for a mortgage), the new procedures have been properly introduced by the regulators following consultation, and because they are rules are not matters which the Commissioner can consider.

The Commissioner recommended that any consumer who is unhappy with the RDR or the MMR requirements should contact the FCA to ensure that their concerns are considered as part of its post-implementation review.