Please note that the New Zealand Banking Ombudsman may only consider complaints about banks that are members of the New Zealand Banking Ombudsman scheme.



Board members

The Banking Ombudsman Scheme is a company governed by a Board on which scheme participants and consumers are represented with neither having a majority. The Chair of the Board is independent of both scheme participants and consumers.

The main function of the Board is to ensure the independence of the Banking Ombudsman and to make sure that the Scheme is well-run and effective.

Prof Ron Paterson ONZM

Independent chair since July 2010

  • Professor of Law, University of Auckland
  • International Research Fellow, New Zealand Law Foundation
  • Board Member, Royal Australasian College of Physicians

Mr Andrew Thorburn

Image of Mr Andrew Thorburn.

Bank representative since May 2009

  • Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, BNZ
  • Member, National Australia Bank Group Executive Committee

Mr George Frazis

Bank representative since November 2010

  • Chief Executive, Westpac
  • Chair, Sir Peter Blake Trust
  • Board Member, Museum of Contemporary Arts, Sydney
  • Member, Advisory Board to the School of Economics, Sydney University

Ms Suzanne Chetwin

Image of Ms Suzanne Chetwin.

Consumer representative since November 2007

  • Chief Executive, Consumer New Zealand
  • Alternate Board Member, Electricity and Gas Complaints Commission
  • Member, Electricity Commission's Market Development Advisory Group
  • Member, Department of Building and Housing's Sector Advisory Group
  • Member, Advisory Panel for Landcare's CarboNZero programme

Ms Mary Holm

Consumer representative since February 2010

  • Senior Lecturer in Financial Literacy, University of Auckland
  • Award-winning personal finance columnist and author
  • Member, Savings Working Group
  • Seminar presenter



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