More than 1,200 tracker-mortgage complaints await ombudsman ruling

Brendan Burgess

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I missed this at the time, or else I had forgotten about it. But it's worth highlighting.

More than 1,200 tracker-mortgage complaints await ombudsman ruling

More than 1,200 [broken link removed] are still awaiting a decision from the financial services and pensions ombudsman.

Tracker mortgages
On tracker mortgages, the ombudsman said some of the complaints upheld have had “profound and positive implications” for the complainants and for other home loan customers of the lenders concerned.

But he noted that lenders were increasingly applying decisions made by his office to customers in similar circumstances to those who had complained to the ombudsman.

“This is particularly evident from decisions I have made in a number of complaints relating to tracker mortgage complaints,” Mr Deering said. “It is my understanding that almost 7,000 customers across a number of banks will benefit from the directions I have made in a small number of decisions.”

The vast majority of these 7,000 are understood to be AIB customers.

However, the ombudsman added that it was evident “that we have received a considerable number of complaints from people who would like to have received tracker mortgages, but who have no contractual or other entitlement to a tracker mortgage”.
 
I’ve mentioned this in the general Ombudsman thread, we are now 13 months since our complaint was submitted. Bank refused mediation.

We’ve yet to receive formal summary of complaint from FSPO office.
 
Does anybody know if there is a general timeframe on clearing these cases? My own case went for adjudication in September 2020 so wondering how long the wait could possibly be before a decision is made. Thanks.
 
Hi....

So update on my case from fspo is that its "at an advanced stage in adjudication process" and "preliminary decision will issue shortly".

Can I read anything into such feedback whatsoever?
 
That's a positive. Once preliminary decision is issued the final decision isn't that long behind. I'd say maybe you'll know where you stand end March? We will have to get to summary of complaint stage but I'm told it'll be in February.
 
SaySomething said:
That's a positive. Once preliminary decision is issued the final decision isn't that long behind. I'd say maybe you'll know where you stand end March? We will have to get to summary of complaint stage but I'm told it'll be in February.
Click to expand...
They add that prelim decision will issue by end March/April....
 
john_mcm said:
Does anybody know if there is a general timeframe on clearing these cases? My own case went for adjudication in September 2020 so wondering how long the wait could possibly be before a decision is made. Thanks.
Click to expand...
My case went adjudication end of Oct 2019. Told it will be March or April for prelim decision.
 
PFS7979 said:
My case went adjudication end of Oct 2019. Told it will be March or April for prelim decision.
Click to expand...
So in total 1 and 1/2 years - that is longer than I thought it would be, either way all we can do is wait on the outcome. Thanks for the update.
 
I’ve been waiting 6 years and still no decision. If it takes the FSPO this long to decide if mortgage products were trackers or not how could the contracts be clear and unambiguous in the first place?
 
B26354 said:
I’ve been waiting 6 years and still no decision.
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Presumably it was on hold during the bank's tracker mortgage examination?

One of the big delays for the Ombudsman is that both sides keep playing tit for tat.

With the Prevailing Rate case, we made a submission and we anticipated all AIB's responses in our submission. When they replied, we really wanted to have another say, but we bit our tongues and said we had nothing else to say.

When the Ombudsman himself looked at the case, he asked further questions of AIB and we again resisted the temptation to respond, other than to say that the questions did not appear to us to be relevant.

And when AIB made an extensive response to the Ombudsman's Preliminary Decision, we again said "nothing further to add."

From memory, I think it still took a year. But if we had responded to AIB's first response, we could be still responding to their response to our response to their response to our response to their response to our response to their response.

Brendan
 
My complaint originally went in in Jan 2016 and was being investigated by the bank but was as you said Brendan on hold for the tracker mortgage examination. When it did go to the ombudsman there were several rounds of back and forth which took November 2019 to October 2020 and it is now finally in for adjudication, communication from the ombudsman has said that the timeframe for a preliminary decision is 6 to 12 months so we will see.
 
B26354 said:
I’ve been waiting 6 years and still no decision
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Even with the back and forth nature of complaints correspondence, this is an inordinately long time. This time frame will only be extended with Covid and many public servants working from home.

(A High Court hearing would be held quicker than this!)
 
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