How to complain about a bank or insurer: do it yourself, Financial Ombudsman, Resolver, claims company or solicitor

It depends on what you want done. Complain to the firm yourself first: that step is free. If you disagree with the reply, the Financial Ombudsman Service is free. A claims company or solicitor can act for you, and they charge. Resolver can help you send the complaint without taking the case over.

How should I complain about a bank or insurer?

It depends. Do it yourself if you can write down what happened, what you want, and the papers that support it. Use the Financial Ombudsman Service if the firm rejects the complaint or does not reply in time, and the complaint is one it can look at. Use Resolver if you want a free case file and help sending that complaint, while you stay in control. Use a claims company or a solicitor if you want someone else to run it and you have read what they will charge.

As of 20 October 2026. The time limits and fee bands below are taken from the official pages linked in Sources. Check those pages before you rely on a number.

Key takeaways

• Complaining to the firm, and then to the Financial Ombudsman Service, is free. You keep any compensation the Ombudsman awards.
• Most firms have eight weeks to send a final response. Some payment, e-money, fraud and scam complaints are shorter: 15 business days, or 35 in exceptional cases.
• You usually have six months from the final response to take the complaint to the Ombudsman.
• An FCA-authorised claims management company has a fee cap on financial services claims started on or after 1 March 2022. The cap does not apply to a claim taken to court.
• HeyRefund is a free drafting tool. You do not need it to use any route in this guide.

Which route fits

Claims company fee cap, as of 20 October 2026

For a financial services claim started on or after 1 March 2022, an FCA-authorised claims management company must not charge more than the lower of the percentage and the fixed maximum. VAT is on top of these figures. The FCA's consumer table also shows the maximum with VAT included.

A customer awarded £1,000 must not be charged more than £300 plus VAT, because 30% of £1,000 is lower than £420. A customer awarded £1,450 must not be charged more than £420 plus VAT, because 30% of £1,450 is £435. PPI claims are capped at 20% of the amount recovered, excluding VAT, under the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018.

The SRA Claims Management Fees Rules use the same bands for solicitors' regulated financial-services claims-management work, and they exclude VAT. They do not apply to charges for reserved legal activities.

Do it yourself

Write to the firm that sold the product or made the decision. Say what happened, when, what you have already asked for, and what you want now. Keep a copy. The FCA says you normally need to complain within six years of the problem, or, if later, within three years of knowing you had cause to complain.

Unless the firm resolves the complaint within three business days, it must acknowledge it in writing. For most complaints it must send a final response, or explain why it needs more time, within eight weeks. You can then go to the Ombudsman. Payment service providers and e-money issuers have a shorter clock for those complaints: a final response in 15 business days, or a holding reply then a final response within 35 business days.

Financial Ombudsman Service

The Financial Ombudsman Service is free and independent. You do not need a claims company to use it. After the firm's final response, you generally have six months to refer the complaint. The Ombudsman can also look at a complaint if the firm does not reply in time.

For complaints referred on or after 1 April 2026, the award limit is £455,000 where the act or omission was on or after 1 April 2019, and £205,000 where it was before 1 April 2019. The service can recommend more. The firm does not have to pay the extra. Different limits apply to complaints referred earlier. If you accept a final decision, you are unlikely to be able to go to court later for more, and court time limits keep running in the meantime. Get independent legal advice before you accept an award if that matters to you.

Past Ombudsman decisions are not a forecast for your case. Who wins against the banks? shows how often customers won in the published record. It is history, not a promise.

Resolver

Resolver (resolver.co.uk) is a free online complaint tool run by Resolver Consumer Online Limited. Its terms, as read on 20 October 2026, say the service is free, that Resolver is not a law firm and not a regulated claims management company, and that you decide how to pursue the complaint. Its about page says it does not act on your behalf or take control of the case. It builds a case file you manage.

The same terms say Resolver may receive a fee or commission if you choose a third-party provider it tells you about, such as a solicitor. You contact that provider yourself. You do not have to. The firm's complaint deadlines still apply.

Claims management company

A claims management company charges a fee to help with a claim. You do not need one to complain. The FCA says making the claim yourself is free, and that a company must tell you about the Financial Ombudsman Service and other official routes, and must ask you to confirm you do not want to claim by yourself for free.

If you do use one for a financial services claim, use the fee cap above, check the firm on the FCA Firm Checker, and read the one-page summary and the cost illustration before you sign. There is a 14-day cooling-off period. A company that only generates leads is paid by the firm it passes you to. The fee cap does not apply if you take the claim to court with the company. You may pay a higher share there.

Solicitor

A solicitor can advise on your facts and can represent you, including in court. That is a different job from a free complaint to the firm or the Ombudsman. Solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Check the firm on the SRA register.

For regulated financial-services claims-management work, the SRA fee rules match the bands in the table above, excluding VAT. Court work is a reserved legal activity, and those rules say the band cap does not apply to charges for reserved legal activities. Ask for the fee in writing before you instruct the firm.

When you do not need HeyRefund

HeyRefund is a free tool. It checks a complaint against published Financial Ombudsman decisions and drafts a complaint for you to send yourself. We are not in the table as a fifth route, because we do not complain for you.

You do not need HeyRefund to complain to a firm, to use the Financial Ombudsman Service, or to use Resolver. Those routes work without us. You also do not need us if a claims company or a solicitor is already instructed, or if you want someone to submit the complaint, represent you, or give legal advice. HeyRefund does not do those things. It is not a law firm and it is not a claims management company.

If all you need is a clear letter in your own words, write it yourself. The firm and the Ombudsman do not require our draft.

Sources: FCA, How to complain and Using claims management companies (Last checked: 20.10.2026); FCA Handbook, DISP 1.6 and CMCOB 5 (Last checked: 20.10.2026); Financial Ombudsman Service, Time limits and Compensation (Last checked: 20.10.2026); Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018, section 29 (Last checked: 20.10.2026); SRA, Claims Management Fees Rules (Last checked: 20.10.2026); Resolver, About and Terms of use (Last checked: 20.10.2026).