Financial Ombudsman resolved more than 220,000 cases in the last year

New complaints coming to the Financial Ombudsman Service have returned to more historical levels, following a previous year of significant increased demand.

Data published today reveals that we received 214,600 complaints in the 2025/26 financial year, which is similar to levels seen in 2023/24 when we received 198,800 complaints. This is a 30% reduction on the 305,700 cases received in 2024/25, largely driven by complaints about motor finance commission and credit cards.

In April 2025, charges were introduced for cases brought to the service by professional representatives. The aim was to encourage better evidenced complaints, ensure the case’s merits were considered before being referred, and to make the funding arrangements fairer.

In 2025/26, more consumers brought their cases directly to us for free, and around 82% of cases were referred by consumers or friends and family on their behalf. We have also seen a drop in withdrawn and abandoned complaints referred to the service, from 35% in 2024/25 to 18% in 2025/26.

James Dipple-Johnstone, Interim Chief Ombudsman at the Financial Ombudsman Service, said:  

Following a period of significant demand, our case volumes are returning to more historical levels as measures we have implemented ensure the complaints that come to us are better evidenced and ready to be investigated.

Last year we resolved over 224,000 complaints as we continue to focus on providing a high-quality and timely service. We continue to focus on our core purpose as a quick, informal and impartial alternative to the courts.

During the same period, we have also seen an increase in the number of consumers recorded as being vulnerable – up from 10% (32,000) in 2024/25 to 25% (52,900) in 2025/26. We have been working to better identify customer needs and vulnerability, including through training for our staff.

Hire purchase (motor) was the most complained about product for 2025/26 with 37,700 complaints, primarily in the first half of the year. There were 32,900 complaints about current accounts, with fraud and scams accounting for 18,900 of these cases.

Credit cards were the third most complained about product, with around 22,800 complaints – 8,800 of which were about perceived irresponsible and unaffordable lending. This is a significant drop on the 49,400 new credit card complaints on irresponsible and unaffordable lending referred to our service in 2024/25.

We are currently undergoing the biggest transformation to our operations since our inception 25 years ago. Working with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the government, we are driving forward an ambitious programme of changes to allow us to better focus on our core purpose as a quick and informal alternative to the courts.

The year ahead will see us focus on delivering a service which is quicker and easier to use. We have already made improvements on our timeliness, with almost half of all cases being resolved within three months – compared to 42% in 2024/25.

In 2025/26, we upheld 30% of complaints in the consumers’ favour, compared to 34% in 2024/25. As we work through the different types of cases, the uphold rate will fluctuate over time.

The following table provides a breakdown of the most complained products over the last three financial years.

About the data

The data published today is for the 2025/26 financial year, from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.

All data in the press release has been rounded to the nearest 100.

‘Found in favour of the consumer’ or ‘upheld’ means that the case was closed as a change in outcome in favour of the complainant.

About the Financial Ombudsman Service

The Financial Ombudsman Service was set up by Parliament to resolve individual complaints between financial businesses and their customers on a fair and reasonable basis, as a free alternative to the courts. It can look into problems involving most types of money matters. It is committed to sharing insight and experience to encourage fairness and confidence in financial services.