Recently Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has introduced an Integrated Ombudsman Scheme to strengthen the existing grievance redressal mechanism.
Changes brought about by Integrated Ombudsman Scheme
Single Window Coverage: Under the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, the earlier three Ombudsman Schemes (Ombudsman for Banking, NBFCs and Digital Transactions) have been integrated into a single scheme.
Those non-scheduled primary cooperative banks have also been included in the purview of the scheme, whose deposits are Rs 50 crore and above.
Equal Jurisdiction: The Integrated Ombudsman will act as a single point of contact for the aggrieved customer as compared to the earlier region-based jurisdiction.
Broad base of complaints: Earlier complaints on unlisted subjects were not allowed under the earlier schemes. The integrated scheme now defines “deficiency in service” as the basis for filing a complaint with a specific list of exclusions.
No Discriminatory Compensation: Differential treatment between participants of the bank or non-bank system has now been streamlined.
Appeals: The earlier schemes allowed customers to appeal against the decision or to the appellate authority (Deputy-Governor in charge of RBI of the concerned department) for rejection of the complaint.
Now the customers under the integrated scheme can file an appeal using the same portal.
Source – The Hindu
