The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has announced a new funding arrangement where professional representatives will be charged £250 to refer a case starting from 1 April 2025. This change aims to make the funding model fairer and encourage better-evidenced complaints and reduce the number of withdrawn or abandoned cases, which currently strain resources and increase wait times. Professional representatives will receive a £175 refund if a complaint is not upheld or withdrawn. Consumers, charities, families, and friends can still refer complaints for free. The move is intended to balance the fee model and improve the quality of complaints submitted by professional representatives.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has published an update on car finance commission complaints, noting that in March 2024 three court cases relating to car finance commission were granted permission to go to the Court of Appeal, and in April 2024 Clydesdale Financial Services Limited—trading as Barclays Partner Finance—started judicial review proceedings in relation to a FOS decision. The FOS says it does not know when it can expect judgments on these cases therefore it is ‘unlikely to be able to issue final decisions on affected cases for some time’, however, it will continue to accept and investigate complaints so far as it can.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has launched a consultation on modifying the interest rate applied to compensation awards. Currently, businesses are required to pay 8% pre- and post-determination interest. Following feedback from the joint call for input with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to modernise the dispute resolution system, the FOS is proposing a new approach for new complaints. Under this proposal, the rate would be based on the Bank of England’s (BoE) base rate plus 1%, calculated as an average over the period from when the money was due until the payment is made. The consultation seeks to gather feedback on this recommendation, as well as a number of other interest rate options and proposals for implementation, with responses sought by 2 July 2025. Further proposals, including measures to address mass redress events, are expected to be brought forward in the summer of 2025.

The Treasury Committee has published correspondence with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) regarding its handling of complaints. In its response the FOS notes that the number of complaints relating to debanking has increased by 69% since the financial year 2020/21, rising from 2,281 to 3,858 in 2023/24.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has published a letter that its chair, Baroness Manzoor CBE, sent to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) chair, Ashley Alder, on 8 October 2024 regarding the decision to introduce a fee for claims management companies (CMCs) bringing cases to the FOS. In the letter, Manzoor outlined the key points from the consultation feedback and the FOS’ proposed next steps. The letter also addresses concerns about potential adverse impacts on vulnerable consumers.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has published its strategic plans and budget for 2025/2026. The FOS aims to increase case resolutions by 20% to address the backlog built up due to exceptional short-term demand in the FOS’ consumer credit and fraud and scams areas.  The remainder of outstanding complaints are impacted by the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) pause on motor finance complaints due to ongoing legal and regulatory action. The FOS has also announced a freeze on case fees and levies for 2025/2026, and committed to providing firms with better insight on complaint trends.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has reported to have received 141,856 complaints between July and December 2024, marking a 67% increase from 95,349 complaints in the same period of the previous year (2023). This rise has been observed primarily in the banking and credit sector—with 109,155 new complaints compared to 62,139 previously—as well as in other areas: 22,075 new general insurance complaints, 3,526 new mortgage and home finance complaints, 4,345 new decumulation life and pension complaints, 2,587 new investment complaints, and 158 new funeral planning complaints. Nearly half of these complaints have been referred by professional representatives, compared with 22% in 2023.

The Financial Ombudsman Service has reported receiving over 68,000 complaints from consumers and small businesses, between 1 October 2024 and 31 December 2024, which is a slight decrease from the previous quarter but a 40% increase on complaints received in the same period in the previous financial year (2023/24).

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has reported receiving 68,000 complaints between April and June 2025, a decrease from 74,600 complaints received during the same period in 2024. This represents the lowest quarterly volume recorded in over a year. The decline was observed across several financial products, including current accounts (7,800), credit cards (6,600), motor insurance (2,800), hire purchase (24,300), and conditional sale (3,300). Motor finance commission complaints fell from 36,000 in Q4 2024/25 to 21,500, while complaints about perceived irresponsible or unaffordable lending declined from 21,600 in Q1 2024/25 to 10,000. Fraud and scam complaints totalled 6,800, with 3,400 relating to authorised push payment (APP) fraud. The FOS has confirmed that it is working with HM Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to modernise its dispute resolution system. Proposed reforms include updates to complaint handling processes and new guidelines for identifying issues with wider implications. Responses are sought by 8 October 2025.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has announced that complaints about financial products have increased by 70% in the past 12 months, with a significant rise in financial complaints brought to the FOS by professional representatives. Credit cards are now the most complained about product, followed by hire purchase (motor).

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has received 305,726 complaints about financial products in the 2024/25 financial year(1 April 2024–31 March 2025), marking a 54% increase on the previous year and the highest volume since the payment protection insurance (PPI) peak in 2018/19. The FOS has published its Annual Report 2024/25, Annual Complaints Data and Insight 2024/25, and Quarterly Complaints Data Q4 2024/25. The increase in complaints has been driven by sharp rises in cases relating to motor finance commission (up 482% to 73,328), unaffordable lending (71,685), and fraud and scams (35,416). Around half of all complaints were submitted by professional representatives, such as claims management companies (CMCs), compared to 25% in 2023/24. The FOS upheld 34% of complaints overall and resolved 227,253 cases—an 18% increase year-on-year—while reducing its cost per case to £1,029. It also reported a significant rise in withdrawn or abandoned cases, particularly from professional representatives, prompting the introduction of new charges for high-volume filers.

The Financial Ombudsman Service's (FOS) has published its Annual Report and Accounts for 2023/2024 providing an overview of the organisation's activities, financial performance, and strategic priorities. The report outlines the service's operational performance, including the volume of cases handled, the quality of service, and the timeliness of resolutions.