News
Banking Ombudsman ING investigations to continue
MEDIA RELEASE
22 June 2010
The Banking Ombudsman Deborah Battell is advising ANZ National Bank (ANZN) customers whose complaints about the failed ING products are being considered by her Office to continue with this process.
“Although the Commerce Commission has announced that it has signed a deed of settlement with ANZN and ING in respect of the failed ING investments, we have been advised that this Deed will not replace any investigations undertaken by the Office of the Banking Ombudsman.
“Similarly, we have been advised that the Banking Ombudsman’s decisions will not disadvantage ANZN customers in terms of any potential for further payouts arising from the settlement,” Ms Battell says.
According to the Commerce Commission, those investors who withdrew from the funds before they were frozen in March 2008 will not be eligible. It has also said that, when considering how the $45 million payout will be apportioned, it may take into account whether investors have already been made right, and to what degree, by ANZN, or through remedial actions taken by the Banking Ombudsman, or through tax adjustments.
“The Banking Ombudsman has always been clear with complainants that the question of whether the funds were misrepresented in the investment statement was a matter for the Commerce Commission to investigate,” says Ms Battell.
“We have looked at whether there was any evidence in individual cases of misrepresentations outside of the investment statement, whether investors received an appropriate service from their financial advisers, whether the products, as represented, were appropriate for investors and whether they had an appropriate proportion of their investment savings in these products.
“I am pleased that the Commission and ANZN have reached a settlement, and that affected investors will soon have greater clarity as to the full extent of any refund due to them,” Ms Battell says.
BACKGROUND
The Banking Ombudsman received some 680 cases for assessment from ANZN customers. To date 458 cases have been completed; a further 122 are under active investigation and 101 cases are waiting to be assigned. All cases are expected to have been assessed within the next five months.
The Commission’s press release is available on its website www.comcom.govt.nz along with frequently asked questions and the settlement deed. Complainants who have further questions should contact the ING on 0800 737 575.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Deborah Battell
Banking Ombudsman
0800 805 950
021 0206 1222