The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has said it plans to resolve 20% more cases in 2025/26 than in the previous financial year and is taking steps to speed up its service.
The FOS, which resolves disputes between financial firms and their customers when they cannot agree, said it expects to resolve 270,000 cases in 2025/26.
The organisation said it is taking action to ensure businesses and consumers receive a faster, more effective dispute resolution service, including improving case-handling efficiency and enhancing the use of digital tools.
The FOS also aims to give firms a better insight into complaint trends, to help them address the root causes of disputes and reduce the likelihood of cases escalating.
The service also said that motor finance commission complaints accounted for nearly half of its current stock of around 190,000 cases and that they could not be immediately resolved due to ongoing legal and regulatory action.
The dispute resolution service also anticipated receiving 209,000 complaints throughout the year across a range of financial issues, including bank accounts, credit cards and insurance.
Jenny Simmonds, interim chief executive at the FOS, said: “We are increasing our capacity to resolve cases productively, building flexibility into our workforce to respond to reasonable changes in demand.”
In February, the service said that it would introduce a £250 charge for claims management companies to refer a case to its service from April 1 this year.
Professional representatives will be able to bring 10 cases to the service for free each financial year and after that, each case they refer will be chargeable. They will receive £175 back in credit if the complaint is found in favour of the consumer they represent, reducing the charge they pay to £75.
The move aims to encourage professional representatives to submit better-evidenced complaints, considering their merits more diligently before referring them, according to the ombudsman service.
A significant proportion of complaints referred to the dispute resolution service in recent years have been driven by professional representatives who either charge consumers or take a percentage of any redress awarded, the FOS has said.
