Sadly some financial products that we buy or financial advice that we’re given is wrong. Fortunately there are two Government institutions that can help us sort through the mess.

The first is the Financial Ombudsman and the other is the Financial Services Authority, commonly referred to as the FSA (see links below for their websites)

As a general rule of thumb the Financial Ombudsman deals with personal finance problems such as insurance and mortgages while the FSA deals with investment products relating to the stockmarket.

Two Main Types Of Financial Problems

Most complaints revolve around a couple of problems -

1. The mis-selling of products. For example, a stockbroker suggests to somebody who doesn’t earn much money to buy a high risk investment (clearly they don’t have the money to lose if the investments go down)
   
   
2. You’re arguing with a financial company and no side is giving in so you need a neutral body to arbitrate over the problem.

The Financial Ombudsman

How To Proceed

The best way to proceed with any problem related to the above is to call the Financial Ombudsman for an initial chat. Most problems are likely to be complicated so it’s better to call rather than wade through mountains of information.

The FSA

The FSA deals with more problems related to the investment world, stockbrokers, Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs) these kinds of companies.

Again, the best course of advice, if you do have a problem is to call them up for an initial chat.

Summary

Complaining can and does pay dividends as long as you've got a valid case.

But the secret is to turn to the right people or organisations for help and advice. And both the Financial Ombudsman and the FSA specialise in financial matters, in effect they are the police and arbiters for the average person.

Links

• FSA Website
• FSA Consumer Helpline - 0845 606 1234
• Financial Ombudsman Service