In the last financial year (2023/24), consumers raised 80,137 cases about banking and payment products – that is a substantial rise from levels the previous year when there were 61,995 complaints.

Driving the increase were people’s concerns about their current accounts and credit cards, as well as worries that they may have fallen victim to frauds and scams.

In particular, consumers complained about administration and customer service followed by perceived unaffordable or irresponsible lending by financial firms.

Complaints are not just rising in the banking sector. Overall, we are seeing higher case levels across the board with 198,798 new complaints in 2023/24 compared with 165,149 the previous year.

The indications so far are that this trend is continuing into the new financial year.

“It’s always concerning when you see cases rise so significantly, particularly when so many people are struggling in the current economic climate,” Abby Thomas, chief executive and chief Ombudsman of the Financial Ombudsman Service said.

“Whether someone is the victim of a fraud, struggling with credit card debt, or having issues with their overdraft, they deserve support and understanding from their financial provider.

“It is imperative that all businesses treat their customers fairly and in a timely manner.

“If consumers don’t feel they’ve been treated fairly, they should contact our free, independent service and we’ll investigate their complaint.”

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Across all categories, increasing levels of complaints are being brought by claims management companies (CMCs) and professional representatives – they accounted for 25% of cases in 2023/24 compared to 18% in the prior financial year.

The financial group has seen examples of both good and bad practice from professional representatives. Some representatives submit mass claims without determining whether they have merit, whilst others fail to respond to requests for evidence slowing down the service’s investigations.

Fraud and scam cases have risen by a fifth and are now at their highest level, according to the report, with 27,312 complaints in the 2023/24 financial year. Around half of these cases were authorised push payments (APP) scams where someone is tricked into sending money online to a fraudster posing as a genuine payee.