Financial Ombudsman Service (Australia)

This article is about the Financial Ombudsman Service in Australia. For the UK Financial Ombudsman Service, see Financial Ombudsman Service.
Financial Ombudsman Service
Predecessor Financial Industry Complaints Service, Banking and Financial Services Ombudsman
Formation 1 July 2008 (2008-07-01)
Type Ombudsman
Headquarters Melbourne
Location
  • Australia
Membership
 Australian Financial Companies
Chief Ombudsman
 Shane Tregillis
Affiliations approved by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission
Staff
 315 full-time equivalent
Website www.fos.org.au

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) is a private company limited by guarantee,[1] Financial Ombudsman Service Ltd, providing an external dispute resolution service for the financial services industry. It is approved by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) in accordance with Regulatory Guide 139.[2]

History

FOS was established on 1 July 2008 following the merger of the Financial Industry Complaints Service (FICS) with the Banking and Financial Services Ombudsman (BFSO) and Insurance Ombudsman Service (IOS); all of which were Industry Self-Regulatory bodies.[3]

FOS became the subject of 'serious allegations' in Submission 134 to the Senate Inquiry into the Scrutiny Financial Advice. Submission 134 was un-redacted by the Senate on 16 November 2015. The document contains allegations that FOS staff produced a misleading file note in the context of court proceedings.[4] On 30 October 2015 Senator Nick Xenophon tabled a number of questions with ASIC in writing in Senate Estimates regarding the conduct of the FOS and the ‘alarming divergences’ between phone recordings and the file note in question.[5] In particular Sen. Xenophon asked whether submission 134 raised questions about FOS’s compliance with ASIC Regulatory Guide 139 and whether ASIC see “staff shortage” as an adequate reason to deny consumers a hearing and whether this would be within the Terms of Reference of FOS. Also questioned was whether any actions have been taken regarding the persons responsible for the file note in question.

Despite there being telephone recordings to the contrary, Dr. Justijana Tonti-Filippini was reported by media as having confirmed "the decision to refer the matter to a court given the complexity of the dispute, the inability of FOS to cross examine all relevant witnesses and compel the production of information from third parties, as well as the need to engage experts." [6] This is despite telephone recordings where Dr. Tonti-Filippini makes statements to the contrary.

ASIC are yet to respond to the questions and, since the filing, other senators have called for FOS to explain the circumstances. FOS did release a media statement attempting to dismiss the allegations and rely on an irrelevant ruling by the court.[7] However, this does not address the substance of the allegations in the submission which concern misleading file notes presented in the discovery phase of the trial.

Despite the the individual being a deputy chair of the Law Council of Australia's financial services committee, the Law Council of Australia has issued no comment. There has been no action taken by the Victorian Legal Services Commissioner despite the individual being named as a person admitted to practice in Victoria. As a party to the case, which would have otherwise benefited, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group has not commented on the case.

Subsequently there have been continued calls by a number of Australian Senators for the FOS to be disbanded.[8][9][10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Tim Griffiths and Jacqui Mitchell (2012). "Financial Ombudsman Service: Dr Jekyll or Mr Hyde?". (2012) 27(9) ILB 130.
  2. ↑ Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 912A
  3. ↑ "ASIC-approved dispute resolution schemes | ASIC - Australian Securities and Investments Commission". asic.gov.au. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
  4. ↑ Submission 134, Senate Committee into the Scrutiny of Financial Advice (2015)(suppl.) - see the supplementary and unredacted version released on 16 November 2015
  5. ↑ QoN Number 92-96, of Senator Nick Xenophon, in Senate Economics Committee, Estimates, Supp 1516, page 11. Available at http://www.aph.gov.au/~/media/Committees/economics_ctte/estimates/sup_1516/Treasury/Treasury_Index.pdf (last accessed 12/12/2015)
  6. ↑ Media, WorkDay. "Australian Banking and Finance News from Banking Day". www.bankingday.com. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  7. ↑ "Financial Ombudsman Service decision supported by Court :: Financial Ombudsman Service". fos.org.au. Retrieved 2016-04-02.
  8. ↑ "Calls for Financial Ombudsman Service to be disbanded over credibility issues". ABC News. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
  9. ↑ "The questions the Financial Ombudsman needs to answer". ABC News. Retrieved 2016-04-02.
  10. ↑ "Financial Ombudsman Service under fire as politicians demand change". 2016-03-17. Retrieved 2016-04-02.

External links

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