Between October and December 2024, the FOS received 68,430 complaints, marking a substantial increase compared to the previous financial year.

Motor finance, particularly hire purchase, topped the list of grievances. Many complaints centre on undisclosed motor finance commission arrangements, with consumers alleging unfair practices and commission-influenced recommendations. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is currently reviewing historical discretionary commission arrangements in this sector.

Credit card complaints are predominantly linked to claims of unaffordable and irresponsible lending, accounting for approximately three-quarters of cases. Current account complaints continue to be heavily influenced by fraud and scams.

James Dipple-Johnstone, interim chief ombudsman of the Financial Ombudsman Service, said: “Every year we help resolve tens of thousands of difficult disputes for consumers and businesses – providing impartial help in often challenging circumstances.

“We are continuing to see high volumes of motor finance commission cases and would encourage businesses to consider whether complaints are covered by the FCA’s temporary complaint handling rules.

“Ongoing legal proceedings are impacting our ability to issue final decisions in these cases, but we are putting steps in place to ensure we can resolve them as quickly as possible when we have the clarity we need.”