Bank complaints soar over scams
‘AUTHORISED’ FRAUD VICTIMS UP BY A FIFTH
SCAMMERS triggered a big rise in complaints about banks last year, new figures reveal.
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) received nearly 25,000 gripes about current accounts in the year to March – more than any other product.
And the watchdog says a big chunk of these were from victims of “authorised” fraud, such as customers being tricked into transferring money into other accounts often by scammers posing as their bank.
Complaints to the FOS about these swindles jumped by more than a fifth to 9370 in the last financial year – and around 75 per cent were upheld in the consumers’ favour.
The FOS said: “Over the last year, we have also seen an increase in scams involving social media, and scams relating to fake investments. Based on analysis of our casework, the increase could be partly driven by people trying to make additional income when they were on furlough during the pandemic.” Customer service in general also continued to be an issue, leading to more than 35,000 complaints last year. The FOS said: “Issues ranged from firms and customers being unable to find a way forward to resolve an issue, to businesses’ lack of care and attention to detail, which could have prevented complaints escalating earlier.” Overall, the FOS resolved 218,740 complaints, upholding 38 per cent in favour of consumers, up from 31 per cent the previous year.