Reserve Bank introduces Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies
As announced in the Monetary Policy Statement of February 7, 2018, the Reserve Bank of India has launched the Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFC) for redressal of complaints against NBFCs registered with RBI under Section 45-IA of the RBI Act, 1934.
Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies 2018
The Scheme provides a cost-free and expeditious complaint redressal mechanism relating to deficiency in the services by NBFCs covered under the Scheme.
The offices of the NBFC Ombudsmen will function at four metro centres viz. Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai and New Delhi and will handle complaints of customers in the respective zones. The details and area of operation of the four offices are as under:
| Centre | Address of the Office of NBFC Ombudsman | Area of Operation |
| Chennai | C/o Reserve Bank of India Fort Glacis, Chennai 600 001 STD Code: 044 Tel No. 25395964 Fax No. 25395488 |
Tamil Nadu, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Union Territory of Lakshadweep and Union Territory of Puducherry |
| Mumbai | C/o Reserve Bank of India, RBI Byculla Office Building, Opp. Mumbai Central Railway Station, Byculla, Mumbai-400 008 | Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu |
| New Delhi | C/o Reserve Bank of India Sansad Marg, New Delhi – 110001 STD Code: 011 Tel. No. 23724856 Fax No. 23725218-19 |
Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Punjab, Union Territory of Chandigarh Himachal Pradesh, and Rajasthan and State of Jammu and Kashmir |
| Kolkata | C/o Reserve Bank of India 15, Netaji Subhash Road, Kolkata700 001 STD Code: 033 Tel. No. 22304982 Fax No. 22305899 |
West Bengal, Sikkim, Odisha, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Bihar and Jharkhand |
To start with the Scheme covers all deposit-taking NBFCs and based on the experience gained, the scheme shall be extended to cover NBFCs having asset size of Rs. One Billion and above with customer interface.
The scheme inter alia provides for the grounds of complaint alleging deficiency in services, procedure for filing the complaint, settlement of complaint and awards.
The Scheme provides for an Appellate mechanism under which the complainant/NBFC has the option to appeal against the decision of the Ombudsman before the Appellate Authority.
