Complaints Procedure as operated by Integrated Financial Services.
(Effective August 1^st 2006 until further notice).

This procedure is operated by Integrated Financial Services in relation to its insurance and investment business services provided under the Investment Intermediaries Act, 1995.
 

• To respond to complaints in a courteous, timely and fair manner.  

• To endeavour to address the specific issues raised by our customers and, where appropriate, update our procedures to avoid re-occurrence of problems.

• To endeavour to achieve a situation where our customer feels we have addressed the complaint, but if he/she remains dissatisfied with the outcome of our efforts, to ensure that he/she is notified of the right to refer the matter to the Financial Services Ombudsman.

• Integrated Financial Services will establish and maintain a complaints file and all complaint records will be kept for six years.

• Where Integrated Financial Services receives an oral complaint, we shall record the nature of the complaint. Integrated Financial Services will investigate the complaint on the basis of our understanding of the issue.

• Integrated Financial Services will acknowledge in writing any complaints within 5 business days of receipt. This acknowledgement will contain a copy of these procedures and notification that the complainant can refer the matter to the Financial Services Ombudsman, or the Pensions Ombudsman, if he/she is not happy with the outcome of our investigation, or if the matter has not been resolved within 40 days. Where 40 business days have elapsed and the complaint is not resolved, we will inform the complainant of the anticipated timeframe within which Integrated Financial Services hopes to resolve the complaint and of the consumer's right to refer the matter to the Financial Services Ombudsman or the Pensions Ombudsman, where relevant, and will provide the consumer with the contact details of such Ombudsman.

• Integrated Financial Services will provide the complainant with the name of one or more individuals appointed by Integrated Financial Services to be the complainant's point of contact in relation to the complaint until the complaint is resolved or cannot be processed further.

• Integrated Financial Services shall endeavour to investigate the complaint as swiftly as possible, and, where applicable, the complainant shall receive a written report on the progress of the investigation at regular intervals not greater than 20 Business days.

• Within five days of the conclusion of our investigation of the complaint Integrated Financial Services shall send a written report of the outcome of this investigation. This report shall include, if applicable, an explanation of the terms of any offer that Integrated Financial Services is prepared to make in settlement of the complaint.

• Where it appears to Integrated Financial Services that the complainant is not satisfied with the outcome of our Investigation, and where we feel that we cannot progress the issue further, we will immediately write to the complainant advising them of their right to refer the dispute to the Financial Services Ombudsman.

• A senior manager will review the file before its conclusion, and attempt to identify any procedures that can be implemented by Integrated Financial Services to avoid a repeat of the type of complaint received. Any new procedures will be immediately communicated to all our staff and placed on the written procedures file.

• The person responsible for complaints in Integrated Financial Services is Eamon Keaney.