Financial Ombudsman Service Remit to be Extended to Cover More Small Businesses

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) exists to deal with complaints between financial service businesses (such as banks, insurance brokers, and loan and mortgage providers) and their customers – some of which are also businesses.

Access to the FOS is being extended to small businesses with fewer than 50 staff and a balance sheet value (net assets) of £5 million or less.

It has also been proposed that the maximum amount of compensation that can be awarded by the FOS should be increased from £150,000 to £350,000 where the complaint arises from an act or omission after 1 April 2019.