information for businesses covered by the ombudsman service
This section answers a number of frequently-asked questions (FAQs) about:
our rules & powers
who we answer to
who does the ombudsman service answer to?
We answer to a board of non-executive "public interest" directors. They are appointed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The chairman is appointed by the FSA with the approval of HM Treasury.
The chairman and directors are not appointed as individual representatives of any particular group or sector. They are appointed to ensure the board as a whole can draw on a wide range of experience, knowledge and skills.
The board directors are not involved in considering individual complaints. Their job is to take a strategic overview. They ensure the ombudsman service is properly resourced and able to carry out its functions effectively, impartially and independently – free from any control or influence by those whose disputes we resolve.
The directors also form a number of sub-committees of the full board.
The ombudsman service is not a government department or quango. Nor are we a trade association, a regulator or a consumer champion. We meet the criteria for the recognition of ombudsman offices, as set out by the British and Irish Ombudsman Association (BIOA). These criteria are:
- independence of the ombudsman from those whom the ombudsman has the power to investigate
- effectiveness
- fairness and
- public accountability.