Upheld: customer service failures - failure to provide promised callback and lack of acknowledgment of complaint letter complaint against Bank of Scotland plc trading as Halifax

Decision detail

Summary

Mr O complained to Halifax in 2025 about initial mortgage advice from 2008 and subsequent customer service failures. When Mr O called to confirm receipt of his complaint, Halifax agreed to call him back but failed to do so within a reasonable timeframe, requiring Mr O to call again hours later. Mr O also complained about being unable to arrange a face-to-face branch appointment to discuss his mortgage. The ombudsman upheld the complaint regarding the callback failure and lack of acknowledgment, finding Halifax's £50 offer fair compensation, but rejected the complaint about branch services as a reasonable business decision.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Halifax's failure to provide a timely callback and lack of acknowledgment of the complaint letter caused Mr O distress beyond the unavoidable inconvenience of day-to-day financial services use. However, the ombudsman determined that Halifax's decision not to discuss existing mortgages in branch is a reasonable business decision, as Mr O has not indicated an accessibility need but only a preference for in-person discussion. The £50 offer was deemed fair compensation for the customer service failures that occurred over a short timeframe.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website