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Complaints Procedure

1. Policy

Application of Policy

This policy applies to One Funding Limited (OFL), trading as MV Asset Finance.

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide a clear statement of intent with regards to the assessment, handling and investigation of customer complaints.  OFL’s complaint handling policy and procedure document has been created to meet the standards and requirements of both the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).  The aim of this policy is to ensure that all customer complaints, either written or verbal, are handled in a consistent and regulated manner and that further complaint incidents are mitigated against and prevented.

Policy Statement and Scope

The policy relates to all employees (meaning permanent, fixed term, and temporary employees, any third party representatives or sub-contractors, agency workers, volunteers, and agents engaged with OFL) within the company and has been created to ensure that customer complaints are dealt with, in accordance with legal, regulatory, contractual and business expectations and requirements.

Objectives

The FCA define a complaint as: Any oral or written expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not, from, or on behalf of, a person about the provision of, or failure to provide, a financial service or a redress determination, which alleges that the complainant has suffered (or may suffer) financial loss, material distress or material inconvenience.

OFL’s objectives are laid out below in regards to customer complaint handling.  The customer does not have to formally address their communication as an official complaint in order for OFL to treat the incident as a complaint and the following procedures will be followed:

  • Complaints will be acknowledged promptly if OFL are unable to resolve the complaint within 3 working days following receipt of a claim.
  • Complaints will be investigated and responded to within a maximum of 8 weeks from the initial customer contact. A final response letter will be sent once the investigation has been concluded with a copy of the FOS Consumer Leaflet.
  • Customers who have made a complaint will be sent a copy of OFL’s Internal Complaints Procedure with their Complaint Acknowledgement letter.
  • Complaint responses will always be provided in writing.
  • Complaint procedures and forms will be available via the company website as well as via written or verbal request.
  • All complaints will be investigated by the Complaints Officer or a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and a full outcome summary provided to the SLT and the FCA Compliance Committee.
  • Complaint records will be used to revise company procedures and to improve communication and business practices where applicable.
  • Customers will be advised of their rights and provided with the FOS and FCA contact information should they wish to take the complaint further.

Responsibilities

  • Employees Support

OFL will ensure that all employees are provided with full training on the complaint handling policy, procedures and expectations.

  • Complaints Officer

The dedicated Complaints Officer will be appointed the role of overseeing, and recording all customer complaints and is responsible for regular auditing of the complaints log to ensure mitigating actions and improvements are put into place where possible. The Complaints Officer or a member of the SLT, who the complaint has been assigned to, will be responsible for investigating the complaint.

Treating Customers Fairly

Complaints should be treated individually and dealt with in a timely manner. In addition, OFL practices controlled handling and document review, in order to ensure consistency in the treatment of complaints.

Complaint Record Retention

In accordance with DISP Sch 1 of the FCA sourcebook, Complaint records and related information will be retained for 3 years from receipt of the complaint.

 

2. Procedure

Statement

OFL’s complaints handling procedure has been created to meet the requirements of both the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) and utilises rules and guidelines from both bodies in its complaint handling procedure and policy. Where a customer has cause to complain, the complaints handling procedure will be followed in every instance and a log will be made of the complaint nature and details to help improve our services and mitigate against further complaints of a similar nature.

Purpose

The purpose of this procedure is to ensure that customers have the ability to raise a complaint with or about OFL, and to know that any such complaint will be dealt with in a standardised and structured manner. All complaints will be investigated by the Complaints Officer or a member of the SLT and a formal outcome and response will be provided to the customer, and where applicable the FOS.

Scope

The scope of this document includes all employees working for OFL (meaning permanent, fixed term, and temporary employees, any third party representatives or sub-contractors, agency workers, volunteers, and agents engaged with OFL), however the investigation, recording and written responses of all complaints will only be handled by the Complaints Officer or a member of the SLT.

Objective

The objective of this procedure is to provide customers with a regulated, professional and fair route to raising complaints and to ensure a satisfactory response is provided at all times. Where OFL’s final response is not satisfactory to the customer, details of the Financial Ombudsman Service and their accompanying Consumer Leaflet will be provided to the customer so that they have the opportunity to take the complaint further.

Investigations and final responses will always dealt with in a timely manner and be provided within 8 weeks, unless an extended period has been discussed with and agreed by the customer previously. Final responses will always be provided in writing. OFL’s complaint handling procedure and Complaint Form will be made easily accessible to all customers and a link to the Internal Complaints Procedure will be placed on the company website.

Treating Customers Fairly

OFL practices controlled handling and document review, in order to ensure consistency in the treatment of complaints.

Procedure Details

Raising a Complaint

Customers who request OFL’s complaint handling procedure will be provided a copy of the procedure and Complaint Form either by email in a .pdf format or in the post and will be asked to raise their complaint in writing as soon as possible after the incident.

NOTE: Complaints should usually be raised in writing; however verbal complaints will be accepted and dealt with according to the same procedures.

If a customer telephones OFL and wishes to raise a complaint, they should be passed through to the Complaints Officer or a member of the SLT who will try to resolve the complaint there and then.

Responding to a Complaint

Where an official complaint has been received, a written acknowledgement must be sent to the customer within 5 working days. The response should detail the complaint handling procedure and provide approximate timelines and expectations for the investigation and future responses.

Only the Complaints Officer or a member of the SLT should respond to customers regarding their complaints.   The customer will be made aware of any delays in responding and the reasons for such delays.

If OFL are able to resolve a complaint within 3 working days, a final response letter is not required but a summary resolution letter will be issued instead. The summary resolution letter will include details of how the complainant can refer their complaint to the FOS if they subsequently decide they are dissatisfied with the outcome.

Investigating the Complaint

The Complaints Officer or a member of the SLT will be assigned the role of investigating complaints and will gather all necessary documents, recordings and information to make an independent review of the incident.

If internal interviews are to be conducted, a note taker will be present alongside the investigator and interviewee and a copy of the interview notes will be written up and signed by the interviewer and interviewee prior to them being added to the complaint history.

All investigations must take place with 6 weeks of the initial complaint being received so that a final response (decision letter) can be sent to the customer within the FOS designated 8 week period.

Investigations must utilise all of the facts and any previous, related information to produce an unbiased outcome and an expected course of action. A complaint reference should be assigned and all documents relevant to the complaint should have the reference written on them for continuity. The reference will also be added to the Complaints Register so that the complaint and document can be audited and traced back in the future.

All the available evidence relating to the complaint should be fully and fairly analysed before reaching a conclusion. This evidence may be in documentary form, be oral or process related.  The specific nature of the customer compliant and the rationale for the complaint should be considered alongside the overall process and procedures within OFL.

In evaluating the evidence, employer rules and regulations must be taken into account, in so far as they relate to or may apply to the complaint or complainant.

Decision Letter (Final Response)

After the complaint has been investigated in full and an outcome and action decision has been arrived at, the investigator or Complaints Officer will draft a final response letter to the customer with both their findings and their decision on any action to be taken.

a) The final response must be sent within 8 weeks of the initial response being raised and should also contain the below information should the customer be unhappy with the decision received.

The Financial Ombudsman Service telephone number, address, Consumer Leaflet and Complaint Form should accompany the final letter, providing the customer with their options for taking the matter further.

b) FOS Consumer Leaflet link http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/consumer-leaflet.htm The customer must be advised that they have only 6 months to log the complaint with the FOS.

Complaint Recording

All complaints, whether formal or informal, must be recorded on a Customer Complaint Register. The register should consist of the following information and should be audited on a frequent basis to ensure that incidents are not being repeated and improvements are being made.

  • Complaint Reference Number
  • Customer Name
  • Date of Incident
  • Date of Complaint
  • Nature of Complaint
  • Lead Investigator
  • Status
  • Decision Letter Sent
  • Referred to Financial Ombudsman (if applicable)
  • Date Complaint Closed

The log should be made available to the FCA and FOS when requested as well as being discussed with the local Trading Standards should a representative work alongside the organisation.