Financial ombudsman redundant

May 14 2003
News24

Johannesburg - There is no need for a single financial service ombudsman to help disgruntled customers because the banking sector was being handles successfully by its adjudicator Neville Melville, his office said on Tuesday.

Lauren Winchester said the speed with which the adjudicator's office resolved problems between banks and their clients was much less compared to seeking redress through the the courts or the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA).

"The average case age was just 63 days... An increasingly small number of matters that were investigated and adjudicated took less than four months to reach conclusion," Melville's office said in a statement.

"In comparison with the time it takes to embark on civil proceedings or seek remedy through the CCMA, the turnaround time is comparable with global standards and is something the banking community should be proud of."

Winchester said: "These results compare with the best in the world. On that basis, we are saying there is no need for a single financial service ombudsman. That idea is redundant.

"The current scheme is so successful, why reinvent the wheel. Neville Melville is not in support of that (the financial services ombudsman)," she said.

Other financial services sectors, such as the short and long-term insurance industries, have their own ombudsman, in which case all these sectors would be adjudicated over by one entity.

Earlier on Tuesday, Melville released his office's third annual report, according to which the speed with which his office handled complaints was central to its success.

Last year, the majority of complaints were assessed for jurisdiction and referred to the banks within two days of receipt, the report said.

It said maladministration, fraud, misrepresentation and negligence were among the frequent causes of complaints.