No need to take complaints to FOS through claims handling firms

Officials from the Financial Ombudsman Service have recently reiterated that there is no need for consumers to enlist the help of claims handling firms in order to take a complaint to the FOS.

Many consumers continue to go through these claims handling firms in order to make a complaint to the FOS regarding a financial service, and many are being fleeced for cash by the firms when in fact they could have taken their complaint to the FOS themselves and it would not cost them anything.

In the past twelve months around 25 percent of all complaints made to the FOS were made through claims handling firms, which means that a quarter of complainants probably ended up paying money needlessly simply because they went through one of these firms instead of going directly to the FOS, which handles complaints for free.

The FOS stated: ‘We continue to tell consumers that they do not need the help of a commercial third-party to bring a complaint to us. We decide cases by looking at the facts, not at how well the arguments are presented. We prefer to hear from consumers in their own words.’

These claims handling firms have also been accused of giving consumers misleading information.

An official from the Citizen’s Advice Bureau stated: ‘If someone has genuinely been mis-sold a debt, or is struggling financially, then we can help them. It will cost them nothing. The fact is that the vast majority of credit agreements are perfectly valid while the claims that some of these companies make are not.’

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice added: ‘We won’t tolerate claims management businesses that set out to mislead consumers and will do our utmost to make the regulatory regime a hostile one for those not willing to follow the rules.’

Tags: personal finance, Financial Ombudsman Service, Ministry of Justice, finance claims, Citizen's Advice Bureau