On 29 August Ireland's Financial Services Ombudsman (FSO) issued a statement clarifying its role in resolving mortgage arrears. The FSO announced that in relation to complaints under the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process (MARP) it can only examine whether the lender acted in compliance with the procedural protections in the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears. The FSO will not investigate the commercial terms of any renegotiation of mortgage repayments.
The statement says that the Financial Services Ombudsman “will not interfere with the commercial discretion of a financial service provider, unless the conduct complained of is unreasonable, unjust, oppressive or improperly discriminatory in its application to a Complainant, within the meaning of Section 57 CI (2) (b) of the Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland Act 2004.”
This means that borrowers in mortgage arrears who feel they have been badly treated have few recourse options. Under the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears, borrowers have the right to appeal decisions about their mortgage by their lender. However, this appeal process is internal to the lender. In addition, there is no requirement that any legal proceedings taken by the bank are halted while the appeal is pending. Complaining to the Financial Service Ombudsman is the only external protection mechanism for borrowers.
Click here to read the statement issued by the Financial Services Ombudsman.
Click hereto read the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears.