The Ombudsman for Banking Services (OBS) published its annual report, showing an increase in the number of complaints received.
According to Chairman, Advocate John Myburgh, the statistics for 2018 demonstrate that the need for the dispute resolution services of the OBS is still on the increase. During the year under review, the office received more calls and complaints than ever before. The dedicated team of adjudicators and managers closed 12% more complaints than in 2017. Despite the increased work load, the turnaround time of 41 working days was well above local and international norms.
Myburgh further highlighted that for several years, ATM-related complaints accounted for the highest volume of complaints received by the OBS. In 2018, however, for the second year in a row, online-related complaints topped the list of complaints. The major underlying cause was phishing. This points to the need on the part of banks to constantly improve their internet banking security. Consumers should also be careful not to disclose confidential information which enables hackers to gain access to their bank accounts.
Click here to download the report that includes interesting case summaries as well.
