Ombudsfin, the financial services mediation service, received 8,857 requests in 2024, marking a 5.8% increase from the previous year, according to figures published by the organisation on Monday.
Complaints regarding phishing saw a significant decrease. Of the requests received, 2,192 were deemed admissible, a slight drop of 3% from 2023.
Fraud cases remain the most common reason to contact Ombudsfin. However, reported phishing cases (internet data theft) significantly dropped to 634, a 26.4% decline from 2023.
Conversely, other types of fraud increased. Investment fraud cases rose to 77, a 30% increase, and other fraud cases, including job scams, fake websites, and enhanced security account frauds, reached 155, up by 4%.
Notable increases in 2024 include complaints about closing bank relationships, which rose to 235 from 159 in 2023, and complaints about savings accounts, which doubled from 31 in 2023 to 64 in 2024.
Ombudsfin also noted a rise in complaints against payment institutions. This number jumped from 195 in 2023 to 372 in 2024, representing nearly 17% of total complaints. Complaints against credit institutions, however, saw a significant decrease, down to 1,659 from 1,948 in 2023.
Of the 2,229 cases handled in 2024, 894 (41%) were found valid by Ombudsfin, a slight decline compared to previous years. The success rate of mediations increased, reaching 81.3% for consumer complaints (up from 70.2% in 2023) and 100% for business complaints.
