The Insolvency Service has published its first report on the operation of the Insolvency Practitioners’ Complaints Gateway, which was introduced last year as a single point of entry for complaints about insolvency practitioners
The report reveals that 941 complaints were received during the year, 200 more than in the previous year. Of these, 699 (74%) were referred to the appropriate regulatory professional body (RPB), 170 were rejected (18%) and 72 complaints were being processed (8%). Most of these were made by debtors and creditors in insolvency cases, which together made up 75% of the total complaints referred.
Dr Richard Judge, Insolvency Service chief executive, said: ‘The detail that we now see routinely is informing our understanding of the nature and number of complaints about insolvency practitioners. It also helps us better monitor the way in which complaints are dealt with by RPBs.’
As an example, the Insolvency Service says the report’s analysis revealed a high proportion of complaints are about Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs), in particular in relation to delays in the closure of the arrangement due to the supervisor of the IVA claiming Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) refunds on behalf of the debtor for the benefit of creditors.
As a result it is in ongoing discussions with the regulators over their handling of these complaints, and both the ICAEW and the Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA), who handle the vast majority of these complaints, have agreed to take forward all cases for investigation where the delay in closing the IVA exceeds six months from the debtor’s final payment.
Information from the Gateway has also allowed the Insolvency Service to identify the number and nature of complaints relating to the Insolvency Code of Ethics and it has reported findings to the Joint Insolvency Committee (which sets standards across the profession), to assist with its review into this area.
Going forward, the Insolvency Service indicated that it will be closely monitoring the duration of complaints and outcomes, but says that as a significant number of complaints remain under investigation, it is therefore too early to make an informed judgement on outcomes to date.
Graham Rumney, chief executive of insolvency trade body R3, said: ‘The Gateway is a significant improvement on the process it replaces and we were pleased to see it introduced.
'It’s particularly welcome that there is now hard evidence on the number and nature of complaints; it’s encouraging that, out of the tens of thousands of cases handled by insolvency practitioners in the last year, there have been relatively so few complaints made.’
