Merry Christmas from the FOS

With the festive season upon us, the FOS has taken the opportunity to spread some Christmas cheer by reminding everyone of the possible problems that can arise at this time of year, including "faulty presents, storm damage, broken boilers and even a spoilt surprise."

In its Yuletide bulletin, the FOS emphasises that evaluating people's personal circumstances is a vital element of any complaints handling process. As a result, the FOS states that it will not only be focusing on making fair decisions regarding any complaints, but also ensured that parties "feel" its decisions are fair. FOS also pours cold water on the idea of a complainant case fee, resisting calls at least to charge CMCs even if only a nominal amount.

However, I note that the FOS' bulletin fails to mention the FCA's review, and report, concerning consumer complaint handling, as reported in my blog last month, at all. Consequently, the extent to which the FCA's report, and the ensuing consultation, will impact the FOS' evaluation of complaints is still unclear.   Let's hope it's back to serious business in the new year.

We will be contributing to, and encourage any interested parties to take part in, the consultation process.