FEES 5.1 Application and Purpose
Application
- (1)
every firm which is subject to the Compulsory Jurisdiction and (apart from FEES 5.3, 5.4 and 5.8) every licensee which is subject to the Consumer Credit Jurisdiction 17of the Financial Ombudsman Service; and
- (2)
every other person who is subject to the Compulsory Jurisdiction in relation to relevant complaints.
5A reference to firm in this chapter includes a reference to a fee-paying payment service providerand fee-paying electronic money issuer6 except in FEES 5.5 and where firm is used elsewhere in this chapter in connection with the obligation to pay case fees.
The relevant provisions of FEES 5 are applied to VJ participants by the standard terms (see DISP 4).
References in this chapter to "firms" are to be construed, where relevant, as including:
- (1)
in accordance with the Ombudsman Transitional Order, unauthorised persons subject to the Compulsory Jurisdiction in relation to relevant complaints (see Transitional Provisions 6 and 7 of DISP); and
- (2)
as a result of section 226 of the Act, unauthorised persons who were formerly firms in respect of complaints about acts or omissions which occurred at the time when they were firms, provided that the Compulsory Jurisdiction rules were in force in relation to the activity in question.
17References in this chapter to licensees are to be construed, where relevant, as a result of section 226A of the Act, as including persons who were formerly licensees in respect of complaints about acts or omissions which occurred at the time when they were licensees, provided the complaint falls within a description specified in the Consumer Credit Jurisdiction rules in force at the time of the act or omission.
Exemption
2A firm will only be exempt from FEES 5.7 for any given financial year if it met the conditions inDISP 1.1.12 R3 on 31 March of the immediately preceding financial year.
3A firm which ceases to be exempt under FEES 5.1.4 R is to be treated, for the purposes of its contribution to the general levy, as a firm to which FEES 5.8 applies.
A firm which becomes exempt under FEES 5.1.4 R during the course of a financial year is to be treated for the purposes of its contribution to the general levy, as a firm to which FEES 5.9 applies.
Purpose
The purpose of this chapter is to set out the requirements on firms to pay annual fees (through a general levy invoiced and collected by the FSA on behalf of FOS Ltd) and case fees (invoiced and collected directly by FOS Ltd) in order to fund the operation of the Financial Ombudsman Service.This Chapter4 also provides for unauthorised persons to pay case fees to FOS Ltd in respect of any relevant complaints which it handles.
4417This chapter also explains the way that the Consumer Credit Jurisdiction will be funded by a combination of contributions collected by the Office of Fair Trading which are paid to FOS Ltd and case fees invoiced and collected directly by FOS Ltd from licensees.