“We define a vulnerable consumer as someone who, due to their personal circumstances, is especially susceptible to detriment, particularly when a bank is not acting with appropriate levels of care,” says banking ombudsman Reana Steyn. Factors that determine whether you are a vulnerable consumer include your age, life events , literacy levels and physical disabilities.
At this point, the bank attempted to limit its liability by reversing the previous goodwill transaction and taking the R6,765.63 out of the complainant’s account. Steyn’s office found that the bank had not acted in good faith, particularly given the vulnerability of the complainant. “We are seeing positive attitudes from the banks with a big shift towards a customer focus. The FSCA now also has representation at board level with all the banks to ensure that the customer-focused conduct is driven from the top,” she says.Termination of customer relationships without proper engagement processes or clear reasons given to the customer.
No proper communication process in cases of dormant accounts with positive balances so that money can be paid over to customers. However, it was not just the case referral numbers that were up. There was a 19% increase in complaints with a record total of 7,719 formal cases. The good news is that despite a likely increase in the use of internet banking over the past year, this was not the largest category of complaints.