Currently, there are separate ombudsmen for banks, non-banking finance companies and prepaid card issuers. The move is aimed at providing an efficient dispute resolution mechanism to the customers.
As per the regulatory statement, “This is intended to make the process of redress of grievances easier by enabling the customers of the banks, NBFCs and non-bank issuers of PPIs to register their complaints under the integrated scheme, with one centralised reference point.”
As announced by the governor speech, “At present, the framework for alternate dispute resolution consists of three separate Ombudsman schemes for banks, NBFCs and non-bank prepaid payment issuers (PPIs). These three schemes are operated by the RBI from twenty-two Ombudsman offices located across the country. To make the Ombudsman mechanism simpler, efficient and more responsive, it has been decided to integrate the three Ombudsman schemes and introduce centralised processing of grievances following a ‘One Nation One Ombudsman’ approach. This is intended to make the process of redress of grievances easier by enabling the customers to register their complaints under the integrated scheme, with one centralised reference point. The Integrated Ombudsman Scheme will be rolled out in June 2021.”
Apart from the separate ombudsman system, currently RBI also offers a complaint management system (CMS) portal as one stop solution for alternate dispute resolution of customer complaints not resolved satisfactorily by the regulated entities.
As per the FAQs updated by RBI in 2017, for banks at present there is Banking Ombudsman Scheme 2006. All Scheduled Commercial Banks, Regional Rural Banks and Scheduled Primary Co-operative Banks are covered under the Scheme.
The Banking Ombudsman can receive and consider any complaint relating to the following deficiency in banking services:
- non-payment or inordinate delay in the payment or collection of cheques, drafts, bills etc.;
- non-acceptance, without sufficient cause, of small denomination notes tendered for any purpose, and for charging of commission in respect thereof;
- non-acceptance, without sufficient cause, of coins tendered and for charging of commission in respect thereof;
- non-payment or delay in payment of inward remittances ;
- failure to issue or delay in issue of drafts, pay orders or bankers’ cheques;
- non-adherence to prescribed working hours ;
- failure to provide or delay in providing a banking facility (other than loans and advances) promised in writing by a bank or its direct selling agents;
- delays, non-credit of proceeds to parties’ accounts, non-payment of deposit or non-observance of the Reserve Bank directives, if any, applicable to rate of interest on deposits in any savings, current or other account maintained with a bank ;
- complaints from Non-Resident Indians having accounts in India in relation to their remittances from abroad, deposits and other bank related matters;
- refusal to open deposit accounts without any valid reason for refusal;
- levying of charges without adequate prior notice to the customer;
- Non-adherence to the instructions of Reserve Bank on ATM / Debit Card and Prepaid Card operations in India by the bank or its subsidiaries
- Non-adherence by the bank or its subsidiaries to the instructions of Reserve Bank on credit card operations
- Non-adherence to the instructions of Reserve Bank with regard to Mobile Banking / Electronic Banking service in India by the bank
- Non-disbursement or delay in disbursement of pension (to the extent the grievance can be attributed to the action on the part of the bank concerned, but not with regard to its employees);
- Refusal to accept or delay in accepting payment towards taxes, as required by Reserve Bank/Government;
- Refusal to issue or delay in issuing, or failure to service or delay in servicing or redemption of Government securities;
- Forced closure of deposit accounts without due notice or without sufficient reason;
- Refusal to close or delay in closing the accounts;
- Non-adherence to the fair practices code as adopted by the bank;
- Non-adherence to the provisions of the Code of Bank’s Commitments to Customers issued by Banking Codes and Standards Board of India and as adopted by the bank ;
- Non-observance of Reserve Bank guidelines on engagement of recovery agents by banks;
- Non-adherence to Reserve Bank guidelines on para-banking activities like sale of insurance / mutual fund /other third party investment products by banks
- Any other matter relating to the violation of the directives issued by the Reserve Bank in relation to banking or other services.
A customer can also lodge a complaint on the following grounds of deficiency in service with respect to loans and advances
- non-observance of Reserve Bank Directives on interest rates;
- delays in sanction, disbursement or non-observance of prescribed time schedule for disposal of loan applications;
- non-acceptance of application for loans without furnishing valid reasons to the applicant; and
- non-adherence to the provisions of the fair practices code for lenders as adopted by the bank or Code of Bank’s Commitment to Customers, as the case may be;
- non-observance of any other direction or instruction of the Reserve Bank as may be specified by the Reserve Bank for this purpose from time to time.
The Banking Ombudsman may also deal with such other matter as may be specified by the Reserve Bank from time to time.
One can file a complaint before the Banking Ombudsman if the reply is not received from the bank within a period of one month after the bank concerned has received one’s complaint, or the bank rejects the complaint, or if the complainant is not satisfied with the reply given by the bank.
