I agree with your interpretation and the bias/preference of the ombudsman towards the industry. Is it a sign of a captured service or a way of pre-empting more such cases in the future? I lean towards the first but other rulings might show otherwise. Thank you for the article. It was most helpful.
Simon: I share your frustration, especially when the ombudsman rules that industry precedent and unpublicised small print trumps fair dealing. When I last looked, Treating Customers Fairly was a mantra that the financial services industry was bound by. Perhaps you should complain to the FCA or whatever it is called these days.
There is a lesson to be learned here: namely that the more complicated a transaction, the higher the likelihood of an unintended outcome. So try to simplify one complex transaction into a series of smaller ones which would be less accident prone. I had a very similar occasion relating to the transfer of investments between managers. When I discovered that one of them could not be transferred in specie, I went ahead with a transfer of those could be so transferred, and dealt with the remaining holding later. This should not be necessary, but it is analogous to defensive parking!
So clearly written Simon. And you are completely right, of course!
I agree with your interpretation and the bias/preference of the ombudsman towards the industry. Is it a sign of a captured service or a way of pre-empting more such cases in the future? I lean towards the first but other rulings might show otherwise. Thank you for the article. It was most helpful.
Simon: I share your frustration, especially when the ombudsman rules that industry precedent and unpublicised small print trumps fair dealing. When I last looked, Treating Customers Fairly was a mantra that the financial services industry was bound by. Perhaps you should complain to the FCA or whatever it is called these days.
There is a lesson to be learned here: namely that the more complicated a transaction, the higher the likelihood of an unintended outcome. So try to simplify one complex transaction into a series of smaller ones which would be less accident prone. I had a very similar occasion relating to the transfer of investments between managers. When I discovered that one of them could not be transferred in specie, I went ahead with a transfer of those could be so transferred, and dealt with the remaining holding later. This should not be necessary, but it is analogous to defensive parking!