FCA Reveal the Firms with the Highest Number of Upheld Pensions and Investment Complaints
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FCA Reveal the Firms with the Highest Number of Upheld Pensions and Investment Complaints
The Financial Conduct Authority keeps track of all the complaints they receive, and their data shows which firms most regularly have complaints brought against them. It’s useful to know which companies receive the most complaints, especially if you believe you might have been mis-sold your pension or investment in the past.
The data covers the period from July to December 2020, and includes complaints made against nearly 230 firms. Here’s a closer look at the companies currently topping the FCA’s list.
The five financial firms with the highest number of upheld investment complaints
The five companies with the most investment-related complaints made against them are:
- Aviva Life Services UK Ltd. - 2,299 upheld complaints
- Barclays Bank UK PLC - 2,028 upheld complaints
- The Prudential Assurance Company Ltd. - 1,627 upheld complaints
- HSBC UK Bank PLC - 1,322 upheld complaints
- Bank of Scotland PLC - 1,098 upheld complaints
The five firms with the highest number of upheld pension complaints
The five firms with the worst track record for pensions-related complaints are:
- Aviva Life Services UK Ltd. - 8,438 upheld complaints
- The Prudential Assurance Company Ltd. - 6,045 upheld complaints
- Scottish Widows Ltd. - 3,590 upheld complaints
- The Royal London Mutual Insurance Society Ltd. - 2,355 upheld complaints
- ReAssure Ltd. - 1,594 upheld complaints
Aviva Received The Largest Number Of Upheld Complaints
Aviva Life Services topped the FCA’s complaints list with a total of 21,276 open complaints raised against them. It had 8,438 upheld complaints relating to pensions, and 2,299 upheld complaints regarding investments.
Aviva responded to the data findings with the following statement: “Aviva takes complaints about its customer service very seriously.” Their spokesperson added: “Where we fail to meet customers’ expectations, our first priority is to resolve the matter as quickly as possible and to act on the feedback we receive.” They also highlighted that the complaints represented just 1.56 out of every 1,000 life policies in the country.
Is the situation getting worse?
The FCA stated that the firms had received 2.19million complaints during the second half of 2020. While that’s a lot, it is 26% less than the previous year. That means that there’s more awareness about mis-selling, and that companies are increasingly focusing on selling their financial products responsibly. However, this might not be much consolation if you’ve already lost money as a result of investment or pension mis-selling.
But what exactly constitutes mis-selling and how do you know you’ve been mis-sold to?
Here are some of the common signs that you’ve been mis-sold to:
- Your adviser didn’t explain the product properly to you
- You felt pressurised into purchasing the financial product
- Your attitude to risk wasn’t assessed
- The risk-level of the product wasn’t explained to you
- Your adviser didn’t offer a full range of options
If the above sounds familiar, then you may be eligible for compensation. To find out if you can make a claim, contact the Goodwin Barrett team today on 0808 163 1659 today or email enquiries@goodwinbarrett.co.uk.
