Danske Bank tops list of financial complaints

Danske Bank has topped the list of complaints substantiated by the Irish Financial Services Ombudsman (FSO).

A total of 13 complaints against the bank were substantiated, according to the Ombudsman’s 2015 report, while a further six were partly upheld.

It was followed by Ulster Bank with 12 complaints substantiated, Irish Life Assurance with 10 complaints and Permanent TSB with six.

Bank of Ireland and AIB had 9 and 7 cases substantiated respectively. In the case of Bank of Ireland, 27 were partly substantiated, while 30 were partly upheld at AIB.

Banks performed worse overall, with more complaints upheld against banks than their peers in the insurance and investment sectors.

Complaints were also upheld against New Ireland Assurance, EBS, Tesco Personal Finance, KBC Bank and RSA Insurance. Health insurer VHI had three complaints substantiated and five complaints partly upheld.

While the numbers of complaints received was 4,872 in 2015, the FSO said it is still dealing with the legacy of the increased number of complaints in previous years and had almost 2,000 active complaints at the end of 2015.

It said a total of 822 complaints were settled without the need for an adjudication or formal finding. A total of 1,206 complaints were closed by way of formal adjudication.

The FSO said complaints concerning mortgages accounted for 50 per cent of banking complaints.

The second largest driver of banking complaints related to bank accounts which comprised 26 per cent of banking complaints.

The main product complained about in insurance was motor insurance which accounted for 20 per cent of insurance complaints, while 36 per cent of all investment complaints related to pension and endowment products.

The FSO awarded €1.1 million to complainants in 2015. This is down considerably from 2011 when €2.2 million was awarded.

Financial Services Ombudsman Ger Deering said the actions of financial service providers and the outcome of complaints can have profound implications for those whom they affect.

“I strongly encourage both consumers and financial service providers to engage fully in the new process and resolve disputes through our Dispute Resolution Service,” he said.