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new Financial Ombudsman Service kicks off season of roadshows at Derby County football ground

7 September 2000

The Financial Ombudsman Service - the new 'one stop shop' for consumers with personal finance complaints - is today launching the first in a series of roadshows for financial firms.

A small team from the Financial Ombudsman Service will answer questions about the formation of the new service and explain what the new complaints-handling arrangements will mean for financial advisers, insurance companies, banks, building societies and investment firms.

Today's roadshow is at Derby's Pride Park Stadium - Derby County's football ground. Representatives from over 300 financial services firms in the Derby, Nottingham and Leicester area have been invited to drop by, any time between 12 noon and 2.30pm. The event is informal and open to anyone working locally in financial services.

The Financial Ombudsman Service is planned to 'go live' next year and will bring together eight existing ombudsman schemes - including the Personal Investment Authority (PIA) Ombudsman, the Banking Ombudsman and the Insurance Ombudsman. It will provide a single complaints-handling service, covering most areas of personal finance - from motor insurance and pension plans to mortgages and stocks and shares.

Further roadshows for financial firms are planned over the next few months at different locations across the UK, including Belfast, Perth, Cardiff, Birmingham, Exeter, Leeds, Liverpool and Newcastle. Firms with questions about the roadshows can contact the industry liaison team at the Financial Ombudsman Service on 020 7964 1400.

The Financial Ombudsman Service is also taking part in a series of exhibitions and events aimed at consumer advisers and advice agencies, including citizens' advice bureaux, trading standards departments and money advice centres.

notes for editors

  1. The Financial Ombudsman Service is being created as part of the new Financial Services and Markets Act which is expected to come into force next year. As well as setting up the new single ombudsman service, there will also be new rules on how financial firms deal with consumer complaints.
  2. Until the Financial Ombudsman Service officially gains its complaints-handling responsibilities under the new legislation next year, the current eight complaints-handling and ombudsman schemes will continue to deal with complaints about financial firms under their own rules and terms of reference. However, the Financial Ombudsman Service already provides shared management, staffing, facilities and administration for the separate schemes.

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