Dispute Resolution Service Able To Award More Compensation

From 1 March 2022, changes to dispute resolution service, Financial Services Complaints Limited’s (FSCL’s) terms of reference (rules) will come into effect.

Free for consumers, FSCL is an independent not-for-profit external dispute resolution scheme which provides dispute resolution services to participating financial service providers and their clients.

The FSCL process focuses on resolving complaints through conciliation and assisted negotiation and is also able to make formal determinations which are binding on financial service providers.

The purpose of the changes to the organisation’s rules was to improve consumers’ accessibility to free and fair dispute resolution.

‘’We have re-written our rules in plain language to make it easier for consumers to understand our rules and processes. We have also increased our financial limits to enable more New Zealanders to access our service in times of need, and to keep pace with the District Courts’ jurisdiction’’ says FSCL’s CEO, Susan Taylor.

Some of the key changes include an increase in the amount FSCL can award for financial loss from $200,000 to $350,000, and an increase in the amount of compensation FSCL can award for non-financial loss (for stress, inconvenience, and lost opportunity) from $2,000 to $5,000.

These changes are in line with issues the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) consulted on in their review of approved financial dispute resolution scheme rules last year – details of which are available here.

FSCL is one of four financial dispute resolution schemes which operate in New Zealand, the others being the Banking Ombudsman (BOS), the Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman (IFSO) and Financial Dispute Resolution Service (FDRS).

You can review the update to our Terms of Reference here.

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