According to figures from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), new complaint cases relating to first charge mortgages rose from 1,299 in Q2 2022/2023 to 1,584 in Q3. The Q3 period covers October to December 2022.
The number of first charge mortgage enquiries totalled 1,482, slightly up from 1,440 in Q2.
A spokesperson for the FOS said there were a variety of reasons for the rise in mortgage complaints, but they were largely down to the September mini Budget and its effect on rates and applications.
They added: “We saw a large increase in complaints about interest rate refusal – where borrowers who were unable to get the mortgage rate they wanted for various reasons. The number of complaints we received about this increased from 27 in Q3 2021/22 to 226 in Q3 2022/23.
“We suspect this increase was directly related to the September mini Budget as we have already seen complaints in January return to normal levels.”
During Q3, 333 first charge mortgage cases were referred for an ombudsman’s decision and 28 per cent were upheld.
The number of new complaint cases made for buy-to-let mortgages increased from 152 in Q2 to 202 in Q3. Some 45 cases were referred and of these, 36 per cent were upheld.
There were 81 new complaints made about lifetime mortgages, compared to 73 in Q2. Some 46 complaints were referred and nine per cent were upheld.
Some 27 Help to Buy borrowers made complaints, down from 39 in the previous quarter while second charge complaints fell from 173 to 121.
Overall, 41,303 new complaints were made to the FOS in Q3, up from 35,342 the year before. Of these, 35 per cent of cases were upheld in the favour of the consumer.
Current accounts, credit cards, hire purchase, car or motorcycle insurance and running account credit were the most complained about financial products during the period.
