New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) received 9.34 lakh complaints through Ombudsman and Centralized Receipt and Processing Centre between April 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024. Ombudsman is an officer who investigates and resolves complaints in a government agency. An RBI Ombudsman is a senior official of RBI appointed by the central banking authority to redress the complaints from customers.
Under The Reserve Bank – Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021, the loan category received the maximum number of complaints. 85,281 complaints were registered in this category, which constituted 29.01 per cent of the total complaints. There has been an increase of 42.70 per cent compared to last year. Complaints related to mobile and net banking surged by 32.61 per cent to 57,242. These are 19.48 per cent of total complaints. Complaints related to opening of deposit accounts went up by 34.45 per cent to 46,358. These constitute 15.77 per cent of the total complaints. The complaints regarding Credit cards shoot up 23.95 per cent to 42,329.
“The Reserve Bank – Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021, simplifies the grievance redress process at RBI by enabling the customers of Regulated Entities (REs) like banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), Payment System Participants (PSPs) and Credit Information Companies to register their complaints at one centralised reference point. The objective of the Scheme is to resolve the customer grievances involving ‘deficiency in service’ on part of REs in a speedy, cost-effective and satisfactory manner,” RBI mentions on its website.
The RBI in its investigation found that some banks were charging unfair interest from customers. The probe revealed that some banks were charging interest from the date of loan sanction, whereas the loans were given later. Some banks were found to be charging interest for the entire month, while the loan started in the middle of the month. Even after taking the installment in advance, full interest was being charged.
Senior citizens filed the maximum complaints. In this category, 2.07 lakh complaints were filed in 2022-23, which increased by 24.09 per cent to 2.57 lakh in 2023-24.
RBI Integrated Ombudsman Scheme: Millions of complaints
- The RBI’s Ombudsman Office has resolved 2.84 lakh complaints.
- Out of these complaints, 1.93 lakh complaints were found valid.
- Of the total complaints, 57.07 per cent (1.10 lakh) complaints were resolved by mutual consent.
- The Ombudsman rejected 40.78 per cent (78,654) complaints
2.14% (4,136) complaints were withdrawn by customers
How can you file a complaint with RBI Ombudsman?
Individuals can register complaint against Scheduled Commercial Banks, Urban Cooperative Banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), and Primary co-operative banks which have deposit sizes of more than Rs 50 crore them under the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme of RBI:
- Visit https://cms.rbi.org.in
- Complainants can email their complaints to CRPC@rbi.org.in
- People can register their complaints via Toll-free number: 14448
- Individuals can also fill the form and send it to RBI Centralized Receipt and Processing Centre, Chandigarh via post.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) received 9.34 lakh complaints between April 1, 2023, and March 31, 2024, primarily concerning loans (29.01%), mobile/net banking (19.48%), and deposit accounts (15.77%). Senior citizens lodged the most complaints, experiencing a 24.09% increase year-over-year. ‘The Reserve Bank – Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021 allows people to register complaints with the RBI Ombudsman. Personal Finance Business News – Personal Finance News, Share Market News, BSE/NSE News, Stock Exchange News Today
