On 1 April 2019, the FCA increased the Financial Ombudsman Service’s award limit from £150,000 to £350,000. This applies to complaints referred to the Ombudsman service on or after 1 April 2019 about firms’ acts or omission on or after that date.
The limit for complaints referred to the service on or after 1 April 2019 about pre-1 April acts or omissions, was increased to £160,000.
These limits are adjusted each year to ensure they keep pace with inflation. This is done by applying the percentage increase in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) between January 2019 and January of the relevant year, and rounding the adjusted figure down to the nearest £5,000.
Following the publication of the CPI figures for January 2020, the award limits are increased as follows:
- For complaints referred to the Ombudsman service on or after 1 April 2020 to £355,000 for complaints about acts or omissions on or after 1 April 2019.
- There will be no changes to the other limits.



Pension transfer advice – assessing transfer risk
Alistair MacDougall Compliance 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, DBAAT, Drawdown, FCA, Pension, Pension Transfer, PI, transfer
It has been well publicised that the FCA has aimed increasingly close scrutiny in the direction of firms that have been providing advice in relation to defined benefit pension transfers. Apparently caught off guard by the then Chancellor’s introduction in the Pension Schemes Act 2015 of what are generally called ‘pension freedoms’, the regulator has […]