Rights group welcomes Oireachtas approval of financial complaints bill

The Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland (Amendment) Bill 2014, tabled by Sinn Féin’s finance spokesperson Pearse Doherty, was passed earlier today.

Much of the bill was based on recommendations for reform set out from FLAC’s 2014 report, Redressing the Imbalance.

Eilis Barry, chief executive of FLAC, said: “It is very positive that the FLAC’s recommendations on financial services complaints in Redressing the Imbalance are reflected in this new consumer protective legislation.”

FLAC’s senior policy analyst Paul Joyce added: “The key reform in this new Act is a potential widening of the time to bring a complaint. Up to now, a person had six years from the date of the financial services conduct complained of, regardless of whether they were aware that they actually had a complaint. This Act introduces a new alternative time limit of three years from the date the person making the complaint ‘became aware, or ought reasonably to have become aware of the conduct concerned’.

“The new time limit applies to pensions and ‘long term’ financial products and may be particularly relevant to the mis-selling of products like mortgages and payment protection insurance policies. In practice, it will mean that the right to complain will no longer just be confined to a six year period from when a loan or policy was sold but also three years from when a problem developed with it. In addition the Ombudsman will have a general discretion to allow a longer period where there are reasonable grounds. This should allow complaints that had been previously ruled out because of the six year rule to be readmitted.”

A separate Government bill to merge the Office of the Financial Services Ombudsman with the Pensions Ombudsman’s Office, along with other reforms, is also in the pipeline and was considered by the Dáil select committee on finance and public expenditure in June.

Ms Barry said: “FLAC believes that the rights of consumers and effective remedies are part of the broader right of access to justice.

“This means the state must ensure that consumers have access to fair, accessible and effective redress systems. We welcome this new law as it improves the redress mechanisms and strengthens the position of consumers making complaints against financial services.”