Mar
Conference 2008 USA New York City
The Banking Adjudicator has just returned from an annual conference in the USA New York City hosted by the Controller of the Currency under the auspices of the International Network of the Financial Ombudsman. This year’s theme was Expanding Horizons – Leveraging Best Practices and sought to pursue objectives of INFO stated below.
Membership
The Members of the International Network of Financial Services Ombudsman Schemes (INFO) are Financial Ombudsman schemes from around the world, which operate as out-of-Court dispute resolution mechanisms in the financial sector. Founding members are: Australia, Austria, Botswana, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Republic of Trinidad & Tobago.
South Africa, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States of America. Depending on their jurisdiction, these schemes provide dispute resolution services for consumers who have not been able to resolve the matter directly with their financial service providers in the Banking, Investment, Insurance,
Credit and Finance sectors.
Objectives
The Network was established in November 2007 (following the Gold Coast Australia Conference in 2006) to develop the dispute resolution expertise of its Members. It does this through exchanging technical information and experiences in areas such as:
- Codes of conduct for Financial Services Ombudsman schemes
- Financial Services Ombudsman scheme structure, functions and governance
- Information technology applications
- Cross border referral of complaints
- Training and continuing education
- Rotational and developmental opportunities
The Network also develops co-operation among its Members through initiatives such as:
- Conferences
- Workshops
- Training, education and instruction
- Consultation, technical information and documentation
- Joint research on subjects of mutual interest
- Internships
- Providing a forum for information exchange and discussion on aspects of Financial Services Ombudsman practices and procedures
Associate Members
Insurance, Pensions, Non Bank Financial Institutions and other Financial Institutions, Internal Ombudsman schemes operating within companies, representatives of regulatory or self-regulatory bodies, and Ombudsman schemes in other consumer sectors, may be admitted as Associate Members of the network, who would also enjoy the benefits provided by this network.
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For more information you may contact:
Banking Adjudicator
Mr Gabriel A.K Maotwanyane
Tel: (0267) 3935409
Fax: (0267) 3935406
Cell: (0267) 71326282
Email: bankadjud@info.bw
or the Secretariat:
Karen Chalmes-Scott
International Network of Financial Services Ombudsman Schemes
72 Coomera Gorge Drive Mt Tamborine Qld Australia 4272
Phone: +61 7 5545 1598
Fax: + 61 7 5545 1385
Email: secretariat@networkfso.org
Website: www.networkfso.org