Summary of the Ombudsman's Report 2009

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112 ombudsmann der privaten banken – tätigkeitsbericht 2009 Because of the global stock market slump, the financial crisis was reflected in ombudsman proceedings primarily in the field of securities business. The chart shows that most complaints in this area – around 77% – concerned investment advice. In 2008, 1,324 complaints about investment advice were re ceived; in 2009, on the other hand, the figure was 2,404, almost twice as many. Complaints relating to securities business in 2009 Portfolio management Settlement 274 427 One-third of these complaints were related to the sale of various Lehman Brothers certificates. Customers complained, for example, that they were not made aware of the potential issuer risk involved or that the certificates did not fit their personal risk profile. Although the number of complaints concerning Lehman Brothers certificates was not particularly high, the failure of this investment bank led to a significant decline in the value of investments last year. The bad performance of their investments and the resulting losses were further grounds in many cases for customers to turn to the ombudsman. Customers often complained that they were not advised properly by their bank when purchasing securities and that, contrary to what they originally intended, they were instead encouraged to make risky investments, or that the specific risks attached to a security they purchased were not explained fully to them. In some cases, customers sought to make the bank liable for the losses they incurred without, however, being able to show that they had any legal claim to compensation. Such complaints usually do not resolve themselves beforehand, so that the ombudsman has to make a decision every time. 2,404 Investment advice/asset management Source: Association of German Banks, 30 June 2010.
ankenverband 113 Complaints relating to lending business in 2009 Consumer loans Lending business accounted for a total of 1,072 complaints in 2009, an increase of around 4% compared with the figure for the previous year (1,000). 681 391 In the case of mortgage loans, there were still several complaints in 2009 about the charging of property valuation fees. These complaints, filed on the strength of the ruling by the Stuttgart Regional Court in April 2007, centred on the question of who has to pay the cost of a valuation made prior to a loan. The ombudsman refrained from taking any action in many cases, as banks were usually able to successfully invoke the statute of limitations. Mortgage loans Although the way banks calculate the early repayment penalty has been clarified by the Federal Court of Justice, complaints were received – as in previous years – about the size of the fee charged for repaying a loan early. Penalties were therefore only questioned by the ombudsman, and banks asked to recalculate these, in a small number of cases. Source: Association of German Banks, 30 June 2010. Both in mortgage lending and consumer lending business, difficulties in repaying loans played a not insignificant role in 2009. Most complaints in this field were filed by customers in the hope that their bank would accommodate them under ombudsman proceedings. As, however, business-policy decisions by banks are involved here, the ombudsman cannot make any decision in these cases. In quite a large number of cases, complaints concerned the new loan terms offered by a bank once a fixed-interest period expired. In a few cases, complaints were also received about
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Summary of the Ombudsman's Report 2009

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