The financial ombudsman in South Africa is the National Financial Ombud Scheme, which handles complaints about banks, credit providers, life insurers and non-life insurers in one office. There is one step you must complete before it will look at your complaint: you have to take the matter to the provider first.
Official contact channels
- Telephone: 0860 800 900
- Alternative number: +27 76 574 8055
- General enquiries: [email protected]
- Media enquiries only: [email protected]
- Online complaint form and complaint tracking: nfosa.co.za
Services and responsibilities
The NFO operates three divisions and your complaint is routed to the one that fits: Banking and Credit, Non-Life Insurance, and Life Insurance. That single-office structure is why it now covers matters that used to go to several separate ombud schemes. It publishes its rules, case studies, rulings and annual reports, runs a service for vulnerable consumers, and maintains a directory of other ombuds and industry bodies for complaints that fall outside its mandate.
Office and address information
The Johannesburg office is at 110 Oxford Road, Houghton Estate, Johannesburg, 2198, with the parking entrance at 19 Ninth Street, Houghton Estate, Illovo, 2198. The Cape Town office is on the 6th Floor, Claremont Central Building, 6 Vineyard Road, Claremont, Cape Town, 7708. Complaints can be lodged in writing on the prescribed application form, and the NFO also provides a telephonic and a walk-in service.
Applications and escalation
Before complaining to the NFO you must first contact your financial services provider, which the NFO calls a participant, and try to resolve the problem with them. Only if it remains unresolved may you bring it to the NFO. When you do, you must supply the name of the participant, your account or policy number, your full contact details, a factual summary of the complaint and copies of all relevant correspondence and supporting documents. You will then receive a letter of acknowledgement, and the NFO will ask the participant to respond in writing within 21 working days if you had not previously lodged the complaint with them. You are given an opportunity to comment on that response, and the NFO may request further information from any party at any stage. If you are unhappy with the NFO itself, it publishes a separate complaints against the NFO route.
Sources
- National Financial Ombud contact page and office addresses: nfosa.co.za/contact-us/
- National Financial Ombud how to complain and complaints process: nfosa.co.za/how-to-complain/