Summary of the Ombudsman's Report 2009

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106 ombudsmann der privaten banken – tätigkeitsbericht 2009 7 Summary of the Ombudsman’s Report 2009 To settle disputes between banks and their customers as quickly and smoothly as possible, Germany’s private commercial banks introduced an out-of-court conciliation procedure as early as 1992: the Ombudsman Scheme. The Ombudsman Scheme is the centrepiece of the private commercial banks’ overall consumer policy scheme, which rests on four pillars: consumer education, consumer information, contract transparency and out-of-court dispute-resolution facilities. 1. The Ombudsman Scheme under the statutory limitation period during the ombudsman proceedings. If their complaint to the ombudsman is upheld, they obtain redress quickly and easily. The private commercial banks have undertaken to accept ombudsman decisions in disputes involving amounts up to €5,000. This binding effect of ombudsman decisions should not be taken for granted; it is not standard practice in dispute-resolution schemes operated by the business sector on a voluntary basis. Experience has shown that banks often accept ombudsman decisions against them even where disputes involve amounts exceeding €5,000. a. Out-of-court dispute resolution As an alternative to the often inconvenient, time-consuming and expensive option of legal action, Germany’s private commercial banks offer their customers a widely accepted, effective procedure whereby disputes are resolved unbureaucrati - c ally and quickly by an independent, impartial person – an ombudsman. The Ombudsman Scheme is designed primarily for consumers, but it is also open to firms and professionals to handle disputes about credit transfers or misuse of payment cards. Details of how the scheme works are set out in the Rules of Procedure approved by the Federal Ministry of Justice for the settlement of customer complaints in the German private commercial banking sector, which are printed in the Appendix to the Ombudsman’s Report. The benefits of this modern dispute-resolution scheme are obvious: the scheme is free of charge to bank customers and does not involve any risks for them. If they do not accept the ombudsman’s decision, they are still free to go to a court of law. They cannot lose out by forfeiting their claims b. The ombudsmen The high level of public acceptance that the private commercial banks’ Ombudsman Scheme enjoys is due, to a great extent, to the quality of the ombudsmen themselves. These are former senior judges or legal professionals whose personality and proven expertise ensure impartial proceedings: • Ekkehard Bombe, former judge at the Constitutional Court of Hesse and president of Wiesbaden Regional Court • Horst-Diether Hensen, former vice-president of the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court, Hamburg • Dr Gerda Müller, former vice-president and presiding judge at the Federal Supreme Court • Dr Gerhart Kreft, former presiding judge at the Federal Supreme Court • Werner Weiß, former senior justice ministry official in Bavaria and presiding judge at the Munich Higher Regional Court.
ankenverband 107 c. Management of complaints A Customer Complaints Office was set up at the Association of German Banks as a gateway to the Ombudsman Scheme. Any customer of a private commercial bank can contact this office in writing if they feel that they have been treated unfairly by their bank. All they have to do is give a brief account of the facts of the matter, enclosing copies of the required documents (e.g. cash account or securities account statements). Complaints in English and French submitted by customers resident abroad are also processed; in this case, however, the ombudsman proceedings can take longer, as translations may be required. A fully intended consequence of the introduction of the Ombudsman Scheme is that most private commercial banks have set up schemes of their own to handle customer complaints. These in-house complaint-settlement schemes have been a success. A large number of complaints do not need to be settled by an ombudsman. In many cases, simply explaining banking procedures or complex, abstract banking transactions takes care of any disputes in advance.
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Summary of the Ombudsman's Report 2009

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