The Monetary Ombudsman Service (FOS) periodically publishes statistics on complaints it has obtained about monetary companies and merchandise supplied by UK regulated corporations. In a yr of excessive publicity and potential mass redress occasions within the UK monetary companies sector, FOS’ most up-to-date updates present some attention-grabbing traits in criticism matter, frequency, technique and end result.
This text (first revealed in Law360) explores key developments in 2025 throughout the monetary sector and the way these have impacted complaints referred to FOS during the last yr.
Modifications inside FOS
The complaints statistics mentioned beneath don’t exist in a bubble and there are exterior components that specify a few of what would possibly in any other case look to be shocking traits. 2025 has seen some large adjustments in FOS price fashions, the motor finance sector, and the UK’s general strategy to buyer complaints and redress.
Since 1 April 2025, the FOS price framework has been charging claims administration corporations (CMCs) and comparable skilled representatives £250 for every case they check with it (solely the primary 10 in every monetary yr being free), with £175 to be obtained again in credit score if a case end result is in favour of the buyer. The change was pushed primarily by the big numbers of claims generated by skilled representatives which have been typically missing intimately and with none sensible prospect of success, but which took vital FOS useful resource to cope with.
The brand new price goals to make funding preparations fairer, and encourage CMCs to submit better-evidenced complaints and think about their deserves diligently earlier than referring to the FOS. The Monetary Conduct Authority (FCA) has additionally written on to CMCs concerned notably in motor finance fee claims setting out its expectations of their behaviour, and individually to warn them that any associated monetary promotions have to be Client Obligation compliant.
Complaints about commissions on motor finance began gaining traction some years in the past and the difficulty has attracted rising consideration from regulators, the FOS, the courts and CMCs alike. It got here to a head on 1 August 2025, when the Supreme Court docket delivered its hotly anticipated determination within the Hopcraft & Others instances on whether or not motor finance lenders are liable to compensate shoppers for hidden commissions [1].
This determination – which contradicted the November 2024 Court docket of Attraction determination by which the lenders in all three of the instances heard collectively have been deemed to be appearing as fiduciaries for his or her clients and to be liable to repay fee – sought to make sure that shoppers who had been handled unfairly could be compensated, whereas disagreeing with the Court docket of Attraction on the fiduciary responsibility level.
The choice got here after swathes of client complaints had already been filed, and lenders have been reported to have ringfenced hundreds of thousands to organize for any mass redress occasion. So, though all complaints stay on pause whereas the FCA consults on a possible redress scheme – and, if the scheme is applied, many shoppers’ claims is not going to attain the FOS – there are however various associated disputes (together with from shoppers outdoors the scheme who assume they need to be inside in) that the FOS must sit up for subsequent yr.
The FCA’s session on its motor finance redress scheme [2] – the deadline for which has been prolonged to 12 December 2025 – sits towards a backdrop of a wider Authorities, FCA and FOS effort to modernise the UK redress system [3]. The joint session on the redress system and function of the FOS closed on 8 October 2025, and proposed various reforms designed to forestall FOS appearing as a quasi-regulator, together with:
- Giving the FCA extra flexibility to handle mass redress occasions
- Implementing a proper mechanism for FOS to refer points to the FCA for interpretation of Handbook guidelines
- Making a registration stage to make sure solely full and eligible complaints progress, and
- Reducing the relevant rate of interest on compensation awards from 8% to the Financial institution of England base price +1%.
If confirmed, these adjustments would require vital useful resource to implement.
Key complaints traits in 2025
FOS publishes statistics on complaints on a quarterly, half-yearly, and annual , and the figures from the final yr or so assist for instance the influence of the developments outlined .
The statistics from Q3 2024/25 – masking October to December 2024, and notably, the purpose at which the Court docket of Attraction indicated that motor finance lenders might have appreciable legal responsibility for commission-related claims – reported an enormous 40% rise in complaints towards the identical interval the earlier yr, with greater than 68,000 complaints lodged.
Probably the most complained about product was motor rent buy (unsurprisingly, in mild of the deal with motor finance fee), though retail banking and bank card complaints additionally remained excessive, with three quarters of the bank card complaints regarding perceived unaffordable and / or irresponsible lending. FOS upheld round 34% of complaints introduced straight by shoppers, which was largely according to earlier intervals, considerably greater than the 26% uphold price for instances issued by skilled representatives. [4]
Equally, the half-year statistics masking July – December 2024 highlighted a 50% rise in complaints in comparison with the identical interval for 2023, with roughly 141,000 complaints, once more largely attributable to banking and credit score merchandise, together with these associated to motorcar finance fee. The interval noticed the proportion of instances submitted by skilled representatives greater than double – 46% in comparison with 22% in H2 2023. [5]
The annual statistics for 2024/25 reported over 305,000 complaints submitted, a 54% enhance on 2023/24, and the best yearly complete of complaints for the reason that cost safety insurance coverage (or PPI) scandal of 2018/19. The whole determine comprised vital will increase in complaints throughout all fundamental concern and product areas, however notably for motorcar finance fee, fraud and scams and bank cards, which noticed their highest ever recorded complaints degree. General, FOS famous the substantial stress this was placing on the UK’s redress system. [6]
These figures modified fairly drastically in Q1 2025/26 – masking April – June 2025. With the FCA’s pause on the necessity for corporations to answer motor finance fee complaints taking impact in January, and the introduction of charges for skilled consultant referrals on 1 April, FOS noticed a 50% discount in complaints about perceived unaffordable and irresponsible lending.
Probably the most complained about matter remained motor rent buy, however throughout all monetary merchandise, complaints numbers about motor finance fee dropped from round 36,000 in This fall 2024/25 to 21,500 in Q1 2025/26.
Equally complaints about fraud and scams, round 50% of which associated to authorised push cost (APP) fraud, dropped from round 8,800 to six,800 over the identical interval. The changes to the price framework for CMCs had a transparent influence on this interval – with round 30,800 complaints introduced by skilled representatives towards round 36,600 within the earlier quarter – and FOS anticipated a substantial additional drop in Q2. [7]
The FOS’ prediction was proved proper, as a result of in Q2 2025/26, new complaints to FOS fell by round one third. Of round 46,300 complaints in complete, solely 4,300 have been referred from skilled representatives, in comparison with over 37,000 of 73,000 complaints introduced in the identical interval final yr.
Notably, their complaints have been additionally extra prone to be upheld, with FOS pointing to probably enhancements (underneath its new price mannequin) in skilled representatives’ due diligence and preparatory work previous to referring complaints. [8] Beforehand, it had skilled excessive numbers of withdrawn or deserted complaints from skilled representatives, who, earlier than the brand new charging construction, had no actual incentive to hold out vital due diligence or take care to supply proof to again up complaints earlier than submitting them.
It’s no coincidence then, that the figures for each irresponsible/unaffordable lending and motor finance fee fell by 80% – within the former case almost certainly due nearly fully to the skilled consultant charging construction and within the latter due to each the FCA-induced pause and the redress scheme session.
What all this meant was that present accounts returned to being probably the most complained about product, though ranges of criticism have remained broadly constant.
What subsequent?
By way of 2026, it appears probably that the instances introduced by skilled representatives will stabilise on the new decrease ranges, and that they are going to be notably cautious of bringing claims relation to motor finance commissions even when the pause is lifted.
So whereas we are able to in all probability count on to see motor finance associated complaints rise once more, probably within the latter a part of 2026, regarding issues which can be both outdoors the FCA’s scheme or the place complainants really feel their lenders didn’t comply with the scheme guidelines, we’d in any other case moderately count on to see credit score and present account associated complaints to return to the highest spots.
Though fraud stays a giant concern, the Cost Programs Regulator has been happy with indications that the APP Reimbursement Requirement launched in October 2024 has seen each good ranges of reimbursement paid to victims and client belief of their banks enhance.
Additionally it is value noting that in latest reporting, complaints about e-money have entered into the highest 5 most complained about areas, with these filings making up 2,200 of Q2 2025/26’s 46,300 new complaints, up from 1,700 in Q1.
This positioned e-money because the fifth most complained about product, towards 7,900 complaints about present accounts, which was probably the most complained about. This sample would possibly point out a future enhance in complaints about revolutionary merchandise because the merchandise turn into extra available to, and extra incessantly utilized by, shoppers.
This can be notably true if the FCA decides to permit crypto clients to refer complaints to the FOS as soon as crypto-asset actions are introduced inside the regulatory perimeter within the coming years. The FCA’s name for views on this level closed on 15 October, so we are able to count on to grasp extra about the place these product sorts will fall within the UK’s redress system quickly. [9]
Sources
[1]Hopcraft and one other (Respondents) v Shut Brothers Restricted (Appellant) – UK Supreme Court docket UKSC/2024/0157.
[2] https://www.fca.org.uk/publications/consultation-papers/cp25-27-motor-finance-consumer-redress-scheme.
[3]FS Sector Technique: Assessment of the Monetary Ombudsman Service – GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/authorities/consultations/fs-sector-strategy-review-of-the-financial-ombudsman-service
[4]Monetary Ombudsman Service receives 40% extra instances when in comparison with the identical time final yr – Monetary Ombudsman service: https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/information/financial-ombudsman-service-receives-40-cases-compared-time-last-year.
[5]Half-yearly complaints knowledge: H2 2024 – Monetary Ombudsman service: https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/data-insight/our-insight/half-yearly-complaints-data-h2-2024.
[6]Monetary Ombudsman Service receives over 305,000 complaints in 2024/25 – Monetary Ombudsman service
[7]Monetary Ombudsman Service sees a fall in case ranges – with complaints at their lowest degree for greater than a yr – Monetary Ombudsman servicehttps://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/information/financial-ombudsman-service-sees-fall-case-levels-complaints-lowest-level-year
[8]Monetary Ombudsman Service continues to see a fall in instances – Monetary Ombudsman service: https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/information/financial-ombudsman-service-continues-see-fall-cases.
[9]CP25/25: Utility of FCA Handbook for Regulated Cryptoasset Actions | FCA: https://www.fca.org.uk/publications/consultation-papers/cp25-25-application-handbook-regulated-cryptoasset-activities
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