How to use new RBI Integrated Ombudsman scheme?

You will no longer have to chase numerous institutions regulated by the RBI to get your financial grievances resolved; instead, you will have a single point of contact to file complaints, submit documentation, track the status of your complaints, and receive feedback. Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme via a virtual gathering on November 12, 2021. The Reserve Bank-Integrated Ombudsman Scheme seeks to enhance the grievance resolution procedure for resolving client complaints.

To facilitate the management of customer complaints, a Centralised Receipt and Processing Centre (CRPC) has been established for the centralised handling of all complaint receipts and initial processing, with a view to moving towards a ‘One Nation – One Jurisdiction’ approach. In addition to including the three previous schemes, the Scheme includes Non-Scheduled Primary Co-operative Banks having deposits of Rs 50 crore or more.

Customers can escalate complaints to the Ombudsman if the financial institution fails to address the complaint within 30 days. Customers can also approach the ombudsman if they are dissatisfied with the resolution or explanation provided by the financial institution.

According to the PMO’s press release, here’s how the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme will work.

How will this scheme function?

The scheme’s core theme is centred on the concept of ‘One Nation-One Ombudsman.’

Under the Scheme, the Appellate Authority would be the Executive Director-in-Charge of the RBI’s Consumer Education and Protection Department.

Customers will be able to report complaints through a single portal, email, and address.

The Scheme abolished the jurisdiction of each ombudsman office.

The Principal Nodal Officer in the position of a General Manager in a Public Sector Bank or equivalent would be responsible for representing the Regulated Entity and providing information in relation to complaints lodged by customers against the Regulated Entity.

The Regulated Entity will not have the opportunity to appeal if the Ombudsman issues an Award against it for failing to provide sufficient and timely information/documents.

A toll-free number in many languages will provide all pertinent information on grievance redress and aid in filing complaints.

How to Make a Complaint to the Ombudsman

To make a complaint online, go to https://cms.rbi.org.in/.

You can also send your complaint to the specific e-mail address [email protected].

If you desire to send your complaint in physical form, please address it to the Reserve Bank of India, 4th Floor, Sector 17, Chandigarh – 160017, in the format shown as an annex at the link https://rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/content/pdfs/RBIOS2021 121121.pdf.

A Contact Centre with a toll-free number – 14448 (9:30 am to 5:15 pm) – is also being set up to provide information/clarifications on the RBI’s alternate grievance redress system and to assist complainants in registering a complaint.

How are grievances currently resolved?

In 1995, the Banking Ombudsman Scheme (BOS) was established. It has been revised five times and serves as the foundation for the 2018 introduction of the Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies (OSNBFC) and the 2019 launch of the Ombudsman Scheme for Digital Transactions (OSDT). The current integrated system was developed in response to the suggestions of the RBI-created Committee to Review Ombudsman Schemes.

An Internal Working Group of ten members, including eight Ombudsmen and one officer each from the Legal Department and the Consumer Education and Protection Department (CEPD), was formed to conduct a thorough evaluation of the RBI’s Ombudsman Schemes. The Committee made several significant recommendations, the most notable of which was the consolidation of the various Ombudsman Schemes – the BOS (as revised up to July 1, 2017), the OSNBFC, 2018, and the OSDT, 2019 – into a single integrated “RBI Ombudsman Scheme.”

It had also advised broadening the grounds of complaints and incorporating only a thorough ‘negative’ or ‘exclusions’ list for complaint rejection to promote transparency and customer knowledge.

The committee was particularly concerned about the time it took to resolve the complaint, and it proposed reducing the turnaround time (TAT) for complaint resolution to 30 days in a progressive way over a two-year period.