From 1 July 2019, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) will accept complaints about financial advice conduct dating back to at least 1 January 2008.
Complaints can relate to:
Financial advice;
Lending and credit;
Insurance; and
Superannuation (other than a superannuation death benefit).
In most cases, consumers can submit a claim for compensation up to $500,000 (for a $1 million facility) and small businesses can submit a claim up to $1 million (for a $5 million facility), increasing to $2 million for a primary production business-related claim (e.g. agriculture, forestry and fishery businesses).
The limited implementation of the legacy complaints process is a key recommendation from the Financial Services Royal Commission, but it is temporary. There is a one-year window to submit a complaint to AFCA. It will close on 30 June 2020.
Further information is provided in the articles below.
The Federal Government released important details of the proposed financial services compensation scheme of last resort for victims of dodgy financial advice immediately before Christmas 2019. Here are some key details you should know.
There is no guidance - yet - on whether the industry-funded compensation scheme of last resort will apply to "legacy complaints" - i.e. complaints made under AFCA's limited expanded remit to accept financial advice complaints dating back to 1 January 2008.
Here are 5 key things that every Financial Firm and consumer who thinks they may have a Legacy Complaint should know.
ASIC has today announced its approval of changes to AFCA rules to allow it to hear financial misconduct complaints dating back to 1 January 2008.