On Jun. 3, UK BBRS urged SMEs to register complaints before closure.
UK BBRS urged SMEs to register their business banking complaint now ahead of the closure of UK BBRS' contemporary scheme to new registrations, on Dec. 13, 2024.
Follows UK BBRS Feb. 2023 reminder registering unresolved complaints, see #130491.
Eligibility Criteria
Eligibility criteria can be found on the BBRS website, but include a business turnover of less than £10mn at time of complaint to their bank and above threshold of £6.5m.
Below this threshold qualifies them to use the services of the UK FOS instead.
The business banking complaint must be against one of seven participating banks.
The incident complained about must have taken place on or after Apr. 1, 2019.
The complaint must not have been via litigation or have been settled already.
SMEs with unresolved eligible complaint against their bank should contact UK BBRS.
Reasons for Contemporary Scheme Closure
The decision to close the contemporary scheme follows UK FCA's report, which did not recommend expanding the remit of UK FOS for business, and the threshold.
In their Oct. 2023 report (FS23/5), UK FCA noted the low numbers of complaints referred under the contemporary scheme, and addressed its usefulness.
UK FCA found that lower number of complaints suggests that there is not a strong demand from larger SMEs for access to ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution).
UK BBRS has campaigned to encourage case registrations, so the lack of demand is unlikely to be due to a lack of awareness of the service, according to UK FCA's report.
UK BBRS CEO, Mark Grimshaw, acknowledged that despite UK BBRS' best efforts, there has been only a fraction of the cases that had been predicted originally.
Mr Grimshaw noted that research, insights and case data shows that the market for UK BBRS, within the eligibility criteria it was given at its inception, simply doesn’t exist.
As such, UK BBRS accepts funding banks' decision to close the contemporary scheme.
Sep. 9, 2024 Deadline Reminder
On Sep. 9, 2024, UK BBRS said SMEs have just over 3 months to register a business banking complaint with UK BBRS: due to close to new registrations on Dec. 13, 2024.
Free, dispute resolution service for SME customers of Barclays Bank, Danske Bank, HSBC UK, Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest Group, Santander, Virgin Money; wholly funded by these banks, it was originally set to close to new registrations in 2023.
SMEs must have a balance sheet of under £7.5mn and not be eligible for UK FOS.
UK BBRS urge those unsure whether qualify to use its online tool or to get in touch.
Nov. 2024 Deadline Reminder
On Nov. 4, 2024, UK BRRS urged SMEs to register their business banking complaint with UK BBRS, which is set to close to new registrations on Dec. 13, 2024.
After this date, SMEs will be unable to register any complaints with the BBRS and businesses could lose out on resolutions and redress payments.
Regulators
UK BBRS
Entity Types
Bank
Reference
PR, 11/4/2024; PR, 9/9/2024; PR, 6/3/2024; UK FCA FS23/5
