Understanding the Process of Filing an Online Complaint in Kerala Banking Ombudsman

If you are a resident of Kerala and have recently faced any grievances related to the banking record, transactions or any other breach of the code of practice by any bank then you must be looking for a way to resolve your grievances and want to file an online complaint to the Kerala Banking Ombudsman.

Introduction to Banking Ombudsman

The Banking Ombudsman is a scheme that has been set up under Section 35A of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, Section 18 of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007 and Section 45L of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934

We know very well that the Reserve Bank of India has been appointed which acts as a watchdog to look after the works of the banks and to resolve any issues of the consumers related to the banks of India. The RBI is the authority that is working at the national however state-wise, the Banking Ombudsman has been set up to deal with the particular banking issues of the regions. The Kerala Banking Ombudsman is one of them (which has been discussed in detail later).

The Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2021

The Integrated Ombudsman Scheme has been developed by the Reserve Bank of India with an aim to streamline the process of the grievance redressal mechanism. The perks that the Scheme has aimed for are:

• Quick Resolution of the Grievances: The Scheme guarantees the resolution of complaints that have not been treated and have been unresolved for more than 30 days.

• Development of a Unified Platform: The Scheme have merged three different grievance redressal schemes to provide efficient resolution of the complaints. The three Schemes were the Banking Ombudsman Scheme 2006, Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies, 2018 and the Ombudsman Scheme for Digital Transactions, 2019. 

• Widely Applicable: The Scheme is widely applicable to all the service providers including the Banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies, Payment System Participants and Credit Information Companies. 

• Zero Complaint Cost: There is no fee charged for filing a complaint 

• Availability: The CMS Portal is available 24/7 thereby enabling the customers to real time submit and track their complaints. 

• No Jurisdictional Boundaries: The Scheme has been developed with a view of One Nation and One Scheme where the complainant can file a complaint from anywhere in the world.

• Sole Point of Contact: With the help of the Scheme a single point of contact has been provided to the customers for physical and email submission of the complaints. 

• Transparency: With the automatic updates and acknowledgments is the key to a successful redressal of the complaint. 

Which entities are covered by the Banking Ombudsman Scheme?

Under the Banking Ombudsman scheme, the below-mentioned entities are covered:

All the system participants are defined by the Banking Ombudsman scheme.

• Regional Rural Banks, Scheduled Primary (Urban) Cooperative Banks all Commercial Banks and Non-Scheduled Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks with a deposit size of Rs. 50 crore and above as on the date of the previous financial year’s audited balance sheets. The Commercial banks include Private Banks, Foreign Banks, Public Sector Banks, Local Area Banks, Small Finance Banks, Payments Banks, etc. 

• All the Non-Banking Financial Companies (excluding the housing finance companies) that:

• Either have the customer interface with an asset size of Rs—100 crores as of the date of the previous financial year audited balance streets or

•  Authorised to accept the deposits.

• Payment System Participants

• Credit Information Companies 

The Entities that are not covered under the Scheme are: 

• Core Investment Companies
• NBFC- Infrastructure Debt Fund
• Core Investment Companies
• Companies that are undergoing financial restructuring and closure 

Kerala Co-Operative Ombudsman Scheme

Kerala Co-operative Ombudsman Scheme is a scheme which is defined under Section 69A of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969 defines it as a scheme that is framed with the object of providing the redressal of complaints related to the deficiency in the banking services or other services provided by the cooperative societies that deals-into the business of banking.

The Address of the Kerala Ombudsman is 

The Co-operative Ombudsman 

Jawhar Sahakarana Bhavan,

DPI Junction, Thycaud. P.O

Thiruvananthapuram. 695014

Phone no. 0471-2464046

Email: kerelacooperativeombudsman@gmail.com 

What are the grounds for complaints?

The Banking Ombudsman can file a complaint related to the deficiency in banking services:

• Failure to issue or delay in issue of drafts, pay orders and banker’s cheques.

• Non-payment or the inordinate delay in the payment of the cheques, collection of the cheques, bills, drafts, etc.

• Non-adherence to the prescribed working hours.

• Non-payment or delay in the payment

• Non- Non-acceptance of the small denomination notes without sufficient cause and for charging commission

• Non-acceptance of the coins without sufficient cost and for charging the commission.

• Failure or delay in providing a banking facility that is promised by the bank or its selling agents in writing.

• Refusal to open deposit accounts without providing any valid reason.

• Delays, non-payment of the deposit,non-credit of the process to parties’ accounts and non-observance of the reserve bank.

• Complaints of the non-resident Indians possessed accounts in India with regards to remittances from abroad, bank-related issues, deposit issues, etc.

• Levying of the charges without the notice of the customer.

• Non-adherence by the banks or their subsidiaries on the instructions of the Reserve Bank of India related to the ATM/debit card or credit card operations

• Non-disbursement or delay in disbursement of the pension.

• Refusal in accepting or delay in accepting the payment toward taxes required by the government/Reserve Bank

• Refusal in accepting or delay in issuing or failure to service/delay in service or the redemption of the securities of the government.

• Forced closure of the deposit accounts without providing any sufficient reason or providing any due notice.

• Refusal in closing or delay in the closure of the accounts.

• Non-adherence to the fair practices code adopted by the banks or non-adherence to the provisions of the Banks Code of the Commitments to the Consumers issued by the Banking Codes and Standards Board of India

• Non-adherence to the guidelines on the engagement of recovery agents as provided by the reserved bank

• Other matters related to the violation of the directives with regard to the banking or services issued by the Reserve Bank of India

• Deficiency in the services related to the loans and advances.

• Non-observance of the directives on the interest rates issued by the reserve bank.

• Delays in sanctioning, disbursement or the non-observance of the prescribed time schedule provided for the disposal of loan applications.

• Non-acceptance of the loan applications without providing any valid reasons to the applicant.

• Non-adherence to the provisions of the fair codes of Practice Code for the lenders as adopted by the code of the Bank’s commitment to customers.

• Non-adherence or the observance of any other directions or instructions of the reserve bank

Lastly, the Banking Ombudsman may deal with such other matters as specified by the Reserve Bank of India.

What are the grounds on which a complaint cannot be made?

• The Issues that are not first reported to the concerned financial entity
• The Complaints that are older than one year after getting or not getting a response.
• The complaints that are already being looked into or being processed by the Banking Ombudsman
• The Complaints that are not directly sent to the Ombudsman
• The Complaints that have been lodged but not waited for a response for 30 days from the financial entity 
• The disputes between a Service Provider and a  Financial Entity
• The complaints related to the decisions it could be the rejection of a loan
• The issues of Employee and Employer with the financial entities
• The Complaints that are just suggestions or obtaining of the advice
• Complaints related to the outside of the jurisdiction of RBI
• Disagreements between different Financial Entities
• The Issues that are already in the court 
• The issues where the Financial Authorities are already following the order of the courts 
• The complaints the nature of which are Irrelevant, Trivial and Non-Serious
• The complaint that have been filed afte a long duration beyond the legal duration
•  The complaints that misses details
• The complaints filed by the Lawyers where the matter is not theirs. 

What can be the grounds for the Rejection of the Complaint by the Banking Ombudsman?

The Banking Ombudsman can reject the complaint if the ombudsman is satisfied that the complaint is frivolous, vexations or beyond the jurisdiction of the ombudsman etc. The aggrieved person can file an appeal against the grounds of rejection to the appellate authorities within 30 days of receiving communication against such rejection.

What is the procedure for filing a complaint to the Banking Ombudsman?

Before approaching the Banking Ombudsman any of the below-mentioned three conditions are required to be compiled:

• The bank has rejected the complaint filed by the aggrieved person.

• The aggrieved person is not satisfied with the reply of the bank

• The aggrieved person has not received a reply from the bank against their complaint within one month of receiving the complaint.

Process of filing the complaint

• Visiting the RBI Complaint Portal: As the first step the complainant is required to visit the RBI Portal and then tick upon the option “File a Complaint”.

• Selecting the Branch Office: The complainant is required to send the branch office to Kerala.

• Filing the required details: As the next step of the process, the complainant is required to provide the bank name complaint name, mobile number, name of the branch, etc. After filing the necessary details click on save.

• Upload all documents: the last step in the process is to upload all the necessary documentary evidence by clicking on the upload option. The supporting documents could be the complaint of the bank, the reply of the bank and the evidence, etc.

• Receipt of the Acknowledgment: After the submission of the details and the upload of the document the complainant will receive an acknowledgment as soon as the review is done by the Banking Ombudsman. Within 30 days of the complaint, the ombudsman is required to resolve the issue.

• Track the complaint: The complainant can track the status of their complaints by visiting the RBI Portal. 

What is the process of the Redressal of the Grievance?

The complainant is required to send a copy of the order of the Banking Ombudsman to the bank and it should always be the endeavor of the parties to settle the dispute by agreement through either conciliation or mediation. The proceedings are required to be in a summary nature.

Award of the Banking Ombudsman

If the bank fails to settle the complaint within a period of one month from the date of the receipt of the complaint, the Banking Ombudsman may either pass an award or reject the complaint altogether on the basis of the evidence, guidelines, directions, principles of the banking law, etc. 

The award of the Banking Ombudsman is required to specify the amount more than the actual loss suffered as the direct consequence of the act of the omission or the commission of the bank or Rs. 10 lacs (whichever is lower) the copy of the award is required to be sent to both the parties.

What is the Effect of the Award?

The award of the bank is binding on the bank only if the complainant sends the acceptance of the full and final settlement of the award within 30 days from the receipt of the bank.

The aggrieved person is required to send the acceptance of the award within 30 days from the date of the receipt of the award and then the bank is required to implement the award within the next 30 days from the date of the receipt of the acceptance of the award from the complainant and then send the compliance to the Banking Ombudsman.

The Procedure for Filing an Appeal

The aggrieved person/complainant may also have the right to fill the appeal to the appellate authority (dy. Governor RBI) against the decision of the award within 30 days of the receipt of the award. The period of 30 days can also be extended by another 30 days at the discretion of the appellate authority. The appeal is required to be filed with the authority of the CMD/ ED/CEO. In the case of aggrieved banks, the period of 30 days of filing the appeal starts from the date of the acceptance by the customer.

It is the discretion of the appellate authority to either:

• Dismiss

• Allow the appeal

• Set aside the award

• Remand the matter back for a fresh disposal

• Modify the award

• Pass any other award as it deems fit for the issue.

Conclusion

The Kerala Banking Ombudsman can near the complaint from the aggrieved customers in the last of the deficiency in the services of the banks and in return the Banking Ombudsman may grant an award or reject the complaint after taking into consideration the technicalities of the complaint.

Frequently Asked Questions On the process of filing an online complaint in Kerala Banking Ombudsman

Q 1. How can I complain to the Bank Ombudsman in Kerala?

Ans 1. For this, the complainant is required to lodge the complaint with the Reserve Bank of India along with the details of the bank’s name, phone number and the details of the complaint.

Q2. How do I raise my Banking Ombudsman complaint?

Ans 2. The complainants are required to lodge their complaints at CM’s portal https://cms. rbi.org in/

Q3. What kind of complaints are considered by the Banking Ombudsman?

Ans 3. The complaints can be related to loans, deposits, ATM issues and non-adherence to the fair codes of practice.

Q 4. Can I complain directly to the ombudsman?

Ans 4. The first recourse is to file the complaint to the internal banking authorities and if the response is unsatisfactory then to file the complaint to the internal banking and ombudsman.

Q 5. Can a complaint be rejected by the Banking Ombudsman?

Ans 5. Yes, a complaint can be rejected by the Banking Ombudsman on the grounds of being frivolous, vexations and beyond the jurisdiction.

Q 6. What is the limit of the Ombudsman?

Ans 6. The maximum amount that can be granted by the ombudsman is Rs 50 lakhs.

Q 7. What are the powers of the Banking Ombudsman?

Ans 7. The Banking Ombudsman deals with complaints related to concerns with regard to the transaction, banking records or non-adherence to the practice code.

Q 8. What are the charges of the ombudsman?

Ans 8. The Banking Ombudsman does not charge any fees for resolving the complaint.

Q9. What is the eligibility of the Ombudsman?

Ans 9. The eligibility of the ombudsman is either the chief general manager, General manager or other authority.

Q 10. How much time does the Ombudsman take?

Ans 10. The limitation period for the Ombudsman to resolve the case is one month.