Credit and Investments Ombudsman
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) was a member-funded Australian ombudsman service that provided external dispute resolution for consumers who were unable to resolve complaints with member financial services organisations. The Credit and Investments Ombudsman (CIO) (until 2014 known as the Credit Ombudsman Service) is an Australian alternative dispute resolution or ombudsman that helps settle disputes between consumers and financial credit providers. The Credit and Investments Ombudsman is one of the largest External Dispute Resolution (EDR) schemes in Australia by number of members, totaling over 22,000 in 2016. History It was established in 2003 as a result of the Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia ('MFAA') self-regulation, originally called the Mortgage Industry Ombudsman Scheme (MIOS). It later expanded its remit to include non-bank lending and other credit services, changing its name to the Credit Ombudsman Service Limited (COSL) to reflect this broader jurisdiction. Since November 2014 the scheme has been known as Credit and Investments Ombudsman. On 1 November 2018, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority launched as the one ombudsman service for all financial complaints, replacing three predecessor schemes, the Financial Ombudsman Service, the Credit and Investments Ombudsman and the Superannuation Complaints Tribunal. Coverage The CIO covers the following institutions: Credit