Borrowers who are banking on a judicial Fifth Cavalry riding to the rescue may have to think again, if a recent decision of the new Court of Appeal is anything to go by.

There was a 42% fall in the number of complaints received by the Financial Services Ombudsman in 2014, according to its annual review. 

The company that took over MBNA’s Irish credit card business, Avant Tarjeta, had the highest number of findings made against it by the Financial Service Ombudsman in the second half of last year.

Distressed mortgage holders who have gone through the mortgage arrears resolution process and are not happy with their treatment by the banks are set to become the biggest cohort of complainants to the Financial Service Ombudsman.

Finance houses face a new “three strikes and you’re out” policy under new rules allowing the Financial Services Ombudsman to name and shame.

Finance houses face a new 'three strikes and you are out' policy under new rules allowing a watchdog to name and shame.

The Financial Services Ombudsman has warned his office is near breaking point, with the number of complaints up by 27% in the first six months of the year.

The Financial Service Ombudsman (FSO) ordered nearly €400,000 of compensation be paid out to customers of banks, insurance companies, and investment firms in the first six months of the year.

Earlier this week, the State Examinations Commission blamed human error and spending cuts for errors in some of this year’s second level exam papers.

The Financial Services Ombudsman will soon have the power to name and shame the institutions that it investigates, according to the finance minister.

Banks cannot auto-matically deny customers the right to return to a tracker rate mortgage if they switch temporarily to a fixed rate, the financial services ombudsman has confirmed.

Financial Services Ombudsman Bill Prasifka is a man with a mission.

The Financial Services Ombudsman received 3,700 complaints between January and June.

The Ulster Bank fiasco drove a record breaking number of complaints to the Financial Service Ombudsman over July and August.

Customers affected by the Ulster Bank computer crash have seen direct debits and other bills charged twice since the 18-day crisis began.

More than 100,000 people caught up in the Ulster Bank crisis could be in line for compensation once the scandal is resolved.

The financial ombudsman has described as a milestone the passing of a bill that will grant his office the power to publicly identify institutions about which it receives complaints.

Almost 7,300 complaints were made against firms in the finance sector last year, the majority over insurance policies, it has been revealed.

The Financial Services Ombudsman wants to name and shame institutions in order to improve customer service and the handling of complaints.

The Financial Services Ombudsman has said much more needs to be done to begin to restore public confidence in the sector.

BANKS and other financial institutions are still not dealing properly with customer complaints, according to the financial services Ombudsman.

THE economic downturn has caused a large increase in complaints against banks, building societies and other financial institutions with a record number of cases being handled by the Financial Services Ombudsman (FSO).

There has been a significant increase in the number of complaints made against financial institutions in 2009, it was confirmed today.

THE Financial Services ombudsman has sent out a stark warning that things at his office are going to change while also calling for more powers to name and shame.

The new consumer watchdog for the financial sector demanded the power to name and shame unscrupulous investment firms today.

THE Competition Authority made rulings on 27 mergers last year, 11 less than in 2008, according to the organisation’s latest annual report.

Bill Prasifka - current chairman of the Competition Authority - has been appointed as Financial Services Ombudsman.

THE Competition Authority has published its notice in respect of Collective Action in the Community Pharmacy Sector.

THE Competition Authority has published its notice in respect of Collective Action in the Community Pharmacy Sector.

THE Competition Authority has confirmed that retailers are pressuring suppliers – including the top Irish food firms – for better deals.

SHOPPERS are being forced to pay more in the south because of a lack of competition, high taxes and business operating costs.

CONSUMERS are not getting the best possible value for money in the Irish grocery sector due to planning restrictions.

THE number of grocery shops continues to dwindle as supermarkets gain a greater share of the €11.6 billion-a-year food and drink market.

WATCHDOGS yesterday said stopping shops from selling cheap booze would only backfire.

CONSUMERS have suffered price rises of more than 170% in dental fees because of restrictive trade practices and a shortage of dentists, consumer watchdogs revealed yesterday.

Irish people are paying too high a price for their dental care, it was claimed today.

THE Government should put its money where its mouth is and tell consumers when their electricity bills will fall and by how much, a consumer champion said yesterday.

A NEW profession of conveyance specialists should be established and an independent Legal Services Commission set up, the Competition Authority said yesterday as it recommended radical reform of the legal profession.

After five-and-a-half years the Competition Authority has produced a report which basically said that the legal profession is in need of fundamental reform, a fact which is neither surprising nor illuminating.

THE Competition Authority gave consumers “false hope” that grocery prices would fall, an Oireachtas committee said yesterday.

The head of the Competition Authority says it is still too early to determine if the abolition of the Groceries Order is having any real effect on retail prices.

THE former chief executive of the Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) has been appointed as chairman of the Competition Authority.

THE Department of Transport was heavily criticised by both the European Commission and the Commission for Aviation Regulation (CAR) last year over its delays in implementing new European legislation for consumers.