FOS plans for complex cases

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27 August 2012

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) is planning for more complex disputes, according to its latest three-year strategic plan.

The organisation says it wants to become more customer-focused, while solving cases more efficiently.

Chief Ombudsman Shane Tregillis says FOS faces challenges as its work becomes more complex.

“As the demand for our service grows, so do community and industry expectations,” Mr Tregillis said.

“Since FOS formed in 2008, the number of disputes we receive has increased dramatically. We expect this trend to continue, especially for credit and financial difficulty cases.”

FOS aims to hire more staff and will push for more electronic document delivery.

To improve its public image, it intends to seek feedback from stakeholders and raise community awareness of its work, especially among vulnerable and under-represented groups.

The three-year plan also looks at the cost of dealing with disputes and eliminating inefficiencies.

As part of the transformation, FOS has created a new level of management.

The executive general managers will administer the organisation’s dispute resolution teams and oversee strategy and business operations.

The lead ombudsmen in general insurance, banking and life insurance will focus on decision-making in more complex disputes, training staff and monitoring industry trends.

“In the next 12 months, we will engage more actively with our key stakeholders, enhance our organisational capabilities – including building on our Secure Services platform – and invest more in staff training,” Mr Tregillis said.