In 2023, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority received 102,790 complaints from consumers and small businesses that it was unable to resolve disputes directly with financial companies, a 23% jump from 2022.。

Australia's Financial Dispute Resolution Scheme records 100,000 complaints in one calendar year for the first time。

David Locke, Chief Ombudsman and CEO of the Australian Financial Dispute Resolution Agency, said: "The number of complaints reported to the Australian Financial Dispute Resolution Agency has been growing at an unsustainable rate.。Fraud-related complaints filed with the U.S. Consumer Protection Agency nearly doubled between 2022 and 2023.。We will continue to pay close attention to these complaints, as well as the impact of rising interest rates and cost of living pressures, and there has been a significant increase in complaints involving economic difficulties.。"

According to statistics, consumers received 3 after complaints to AFCA.$04 billion in compensation and refunds, up 38% from the previous year。

AFCA registered 8,987 fraud-related complaints, up 95% from 4,611 in 2022; total 5,396 complaints involving financial hardship, up 29% from 2022。

Complaints about other financial products covered by the AFCA also rose, including banking and finance, insurance, investment and advisory, and pensions.。

David Locke said: "We also need to see an overall downward trend in complaints, and financial firms should be better able to support their customers and deal with complaints quickly and effectively internally.。Many financial firms can handle complaints better within their internal complaints process, with only the most complex cases being referred to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, which is exactly the role we should play.。On the contrary, the large number of complaints we received put unnecessary pressure on the external dispute resolution system, and inevitably caused more delays for consumers。"

AFCA was established after the 2017 Ramsay Review recommended a single scheme to deal with disputes previously dealt with by the Financial Ombudsman Service, the Credit and Investment Ombudsman and the Pensions Appeals Tribunal.。The programme began work on 1 November 2018。

Since its inception, AFCA has received more than 420,000 complaints, helping consumers secure $1.3 billion in compensation or refunds.。In addition, AFCA's systemic issues work, which identifies a broader range of issues than a single complaint, has enabled 4.9 million people to receive more than 3.800 million dollars in compensation。