The Current Issues of Resolving Financial Service Disputes

Over the past year, a number of new trends have emerged in the resolution of disputes between consumers of financial services and financial institutions. In particular, one of the main trends in dispute settlements with insurers was the formal establishment of the practice of recovering damages from insurers for violations of car repair obligations under third-party liability insurance contracts. At present, such damages are collected based on the market value of the repairs that need to be made and without taking into account the maximum insurance amount established by the Law on Mandatory Third-Party Liability Insurance. In addition, over the past few years, the regulatory framework has undergone significant changes in terms of banks providing consumers with additional services during lending: the cooling-off period has been increased and banks have been made jointly liable for refunding the cost of additional services provided by third parties if such services are declined during the cooling-off period. In terms of private pension insurance, the financial ombudsman was given the purview in late 2023 to consider disputes concerning the transfers of pension savings. How have these changes affected the financial market? What issues still need to be resolved in the context of relationships involving financial service consumers? What legislative amendments or changes in law enforcement practice in this regard can be expected in the foreseeable future?