Responding to news that the federal government does not intend to require banks to use its services, the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI) says that it will wait to see the government’s rules in this area before deciding whether to continue dealing with banking complaints.
Responding to a report in Monday’s Financial Post indicating the federal finance minister Jim Flaherty doesn’t intend to require the banks to use OBSI as their provider of dispute resolution services, OBSI released a statement indicating that it has not yet decided its future in the business of handling banking complaints.
“We will wait to see the draft regulations before deciding what the next steps will be for our banking mandate,” said OBSI chair, Dr. Peggy-Anne Brown, in a statement. Previously, OBSI has suggested that it may have to give up dealing with bank complaints, if it didn’t receive adequate support from regulators and policymakers.
“While not what we were hoping for, we appreciate receiving clarity as to the federal government’s intent with respect to banking consumer dispute resolution,”Brown said.
In the meantime, she said it remains business as usual for banking complaints at OBSI. “We remain committed to our existing mandate, providing independent and effective dispute resolution for all of our participating firms and their customers until the release of the draft regulations,” she added.