Madam, – The Editorial “Transparent Finance” (November 29th) highlights the urgent need for our financial institutions to address their approach to customer complaints.
It is clear that when dealing with their financial institutions, Irish consumers are willing to complain when dissatisfied and remain steadfast as the complaint progresses. By the time a dispute gets to the desk of the Financial Services Ombudsman, internal complaint procedures must have been exhausted and it is likely that the parties have already become highly polarised. Tensions are likely to be running very high.
It is therefore probably unsurprising that only 1 per cent of the complaints received by the Ombudsman over the past six months were resolved using the voluntary process of mediation: an alternative dispute resolution process which allows for a discussion beyond the legal rights of the parties by focusing on their underlying interests. This offers an opportunity to address any emotional angle to the dispute and allows for more creative solutions to its resolution.
The Ombudsman has called on the financial services community to “resolve customer issues at an earlier stage”. This is consistent with the optimal use of mediation – at the earliest stage of the conflict and before positions become intractable.
Though a voluntary process, there is much that the financial services community can do to set up conditions in which the parties themselves might find a solution to their problems through mediation. The Law Reform Commission in its Report on Alternative Dispute Resolution(November 16th) recommends dispute-avoidance and problem-solving activities should be further integrated into Irish workplaces.
“Our” banks, insurance companies and other financial services organisations could take the lead here by offering and using mediation to support the early resolution of the grievances of their customers. This would, almost certainly, reduce the strain on the complainant, financial service provider and Ombudsman alike. – Yours, etc,