FIN.

FOS publishes 2021/22 plans and budget

FOS has published its plans and budget for 2021/22 which were consulted on between December 2019 and January 2020. FOS has forecast a reduced caseload in 2021/22 following the unprecedented increase during 2020 triggered predominantly by the Covid-19 pandemic. It expects that complaints arising from Covid-19, PPI and scams such as push-payment fraud will dominate.

FOS’ strategic priorities for this period will be:

  • enhancing its service by bringing down wait times, looking for opportunities to resolve complaints at scale (using the approach to PPI as a model), continue to focus on vulnerable consumers and looking to use technology to ensure efficiency and flexibility;
  • attempting to prevent complaints and unfairness arising by pro-actively engaging with stakeholders such as businesses, HM Treasury, consumer bodies and the FCA; and
  • building FOS’ future capacity by improving efficiency, making use of cloud services where appropriate, improving diversity within its workforce and maintaining a focus on sustainability.

FOS budget for the period will be £260 million which will be funded through an increased compulsory jurisdiction levy of £96 million, an increase of £100 in its case fee to £750 and a voluntary jurisdiction levy of £1 million.

FCA has issued an amendment to the Fees Manual section of its Handbook to reflect the updated 2020/21 FOS budget.

Duncan Scott