How to effectively complain about a bank

There are over 600 commercial banks in Russia that provide millions of services to their clients every day. But banking services do not always meet the standards. Incorrect operation of ATMs, illegal debiting of funds, rudeness or incompetence of employees - these and many other problems can be solved by writing a complaint to the bank. In this article, you will learn how to correctly draw up a claim and where to contact it.

The legal regulation of banking in Russia is carried out by the Constitution, the law "On banks and banking" and "On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation", as well as other regulatory legal acts.

For violation of the law, financial and credit organizations can be brought to various types of liability - from disciplinary to criminal. For example, according to Article 15.26 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, if a credit institution violates the standards established by the Central Bank, it will receive a warning or a fine.

If the bank and its representatives, by their actions or inaction, violate the material rights of a citizen or any regulated procedure, then this citizen has the right to seek protection in court. But first, you usually need to go through a claim proceeding.

Simply put, you shouldn't rush to court right away. First, try filing a complaint with the bank. In the vast majority of cases, this is enough to solve the problem. We will show you how and where to complain.

We make a complaint competently

In this case, there is no unified form of the document. Claims can be stated arbitrarily: if you place the details not on the right, but on the left, or instead of the word “complaint” you write “statement”, this will not be a mistake. However, it is best to follow the general requirements for written statements.

A cap. In the upper right corner, you must indicate who the complaint comes from (your personal data, including address and contact phone number) and to whom the complaint is addressed. If you do not know the name of the official you are looking for, write simply "Leader".
Title. Write the word “complaint” in large letters in the middle of the line.
Factual circumstances of the case. State what rights, in your opinion, have been violated, by what actions or inactions of the bank. Give your arguments. Describe when, what time and under what circumstances the incident occurred, or when you discovered the fact of the offense. Is anyone in particular to blame for what happened? If yes, please include the last name and first name of this subject.
Applications. Back up your outrage with written evidence. Attach to your complaint a copy of the loan agreement, a receipt for payment of a particular service, an account statement, and so on.
Requirements. Formulate what specific decision you expect on your complaint: "I ask to eliminate the consequences …", "give a legal assessment …", "punish the guilty …" and so on.
Date and signature. Do not forget to indicate when the complaint was made and also endorse it.

When filing a complaint, do not curse and scold. Superfluous epithets and details only complicate understanding, therefore, delay the proceedings.

Stick to the rule: less emotion, more facts.

Any more or less large credit institution has a complaints department, where, as a rule, they try to solve problems without washing dirty linen in public.

Research shows that a customer who complains and is heard becomes consistent and loyal. Banks value their reputation and know that if a disgruntled customer is simply brushed aside, he will tell his friends about it, and they will tell theirs.

Therefore, the first thing to do in the event of a conflict situation is to contact the bank itself.

The term for processing written complaints by credit institutions, as a rule, is seven to ten banking days.

During this time, the bank will conduct an internal investigation, develop solutions to the problem and offer them to you orally (by phone) or in writing.

As practice shows, they respond most promptly to complaints received through Internet resources and by calling hotlines. They are usually processed on the same day.

Bank	Telephones	Online reception
Sberbank	8-800-555-55-50; +7-495-500-55-50; 900 (available in Russia for MTS, Megafon, Beeline and Tele2 subscribers)
VTB 24	+ 7-495-777-24-24 (for Moscow); 8-800-100-24-24 (for regions)	-
Rosselkhozbank	8-800-200-02-90; +7-495-787-7-787; +7-495-777-11-00
Alfa Bank	+ 7-495-78-888-78 (for Moscow and the Moscow region); 8-800-2000-000 (for regions).
Tinkoff Bank	8-800-333-777-3

If the bank did not satisfy your complaint or you were unhappy with the decision, you can write a negative review on the thematic website or forum, or contact one of the supervisory authorities.

Banks.ru and other popular ratings

Again, banks value their reputation and do not like public proceedings.

Many financial institutions have dedicated staff to track reviews and provide feedback. If such an employee sees on the Internet a complaint about the bank he represents, he will try to respond as quickly as possible. Your message will be passed on to the responsible persons or they will tell you the algorithm of actions.

One of the most authoritative resources in this regard is the Banki.ru information portal. It was launched in 2005 and today it is one of the most cited financial media resources on the Runet.

The name speaks for itself: on the site you will find ratings of Russian banks in terms of service level and quality of services, ratings of the most profitable deposits and ratings of loans with the lowest rates.

You can leave a complaint about a particular bank in the section "" or on the forum in the topic "". Representatives of more than 220 Russian banks respond to customer reviews.

To state the problem, as in the case of written appeals, is brief, emotionless and to the point. The moderator will not miss messages containing insults or obscene language.

In the national rating "Banks.ru" you can complain about a bank employee, erroneous debiting of funds, incorrect operation of an ATM and other problems that concern you personally. It makes no sense to be indignant at legal, but, in your opinion, unfair actions (“Arbitrariness: my sister has nothing to pay on the loan, the bank has seized the property!”).

Association of Russian Banks and Financial Ombudsman

The Association of Russian Banks is a non-governmental non-profit organization established in 1991. It has 522 members, including 350 credit organizations. The Association includes all the largest banks in Russia, 19 representative offices of foreign banks, 65 banks with foreign participation in the authorized capital, as well as the “big four” audit companies.

The Association not only protects the interests of credit institutions in the legislative, executive and law enforcement bodies, but also seeks to improve the work of banks. To do this, the official website of the Association has a section where anyone can go to any bank.

The complaint will be posted on the website of the Association of Russian Banks in the public domain.

Bank representatives can comment on complaints.

In 2010, the Federal Law "On an alternative procedure for resolving disputes with the participation of a mediator (mediation procedure)" was adopted and on January 1, 2011 came into force. At the same time, on the initiative of the Association of Russian Banks, the institution of the financial ombudsman was established in 2010. This was another step towards building a dialogue between banks and customers.

The Financial Ombudsman is an impartial, impartial and influential person who can help negotiate with the bank.

He does not punish banks or tell customers what to do. He mediates between the first and the second and helps to come to a compromise. For example, the financial ombudsman can offer mutually beneficial terms for the bank and the client to restructure the loan.

You can turn to a public conciliator in the financial market.

Rospotrebnadzor

Banks serve clients, and therefore, in the event of a disputable situation, you can contact the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare to protect your rights.

What you can complain to Rospotrebnadzor:

Inclusion in the contract of provisions that infringe on consumer rights (Article 16 of the Law "On Protection of Consumer Rights"). For example, the limitation of jurisdiction, the right to unilaterally amend the contract.
Insufficient or inaccurate information about services (Articles 10 and 12 of the Law "On Protection of Consumer Rights").

Federal Antimonopoly Service

The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) is an executive body that oversees compliance with competition and advertising legislation.

A typical subject of a complaint to the FAS: the bank gained a competitive advantage over other credit institutions, as it misled customers (for example, offered a deposit at a low interest rate), and then changed the terms of the agreement.

Unfair competition entails the imposition of an administrative fine on officials in the amount of 12,000 to 20,000 rubles, on legal entities - from 100,000 to 500,000 rubles (Article 14.33 of the Code of Administrative Offenses).

You can also complain to the FAS about SMS spam that comes from banks.

In accordance with the law "On the Procedure for Considering Citizens' Appeals", the Federal Antimonopoly Service within 30 days must consider the complaint, conduct an inspection and, if violations are identified, issue an order to eliminate them.

Please note that on this page there is an email - [email protected], to which you can send an appeal if you need to attach several files. For example, screenshots of the bank's online advertising.

Central Bank of the Russian Federation

The Bank of Russia is the body of banking regulation and supervision. He monitors compliance by credit institutions with the banking legislation of the Russian Federation, the regulations of the Central Bank and the standards established by it (Article 56 of the Law "On the Bank of Russia").

You can complain to the Central Bank if, for example, the bank imposes unnecessary services on you, if it transferred information about the client to third parties in violation, unlawfully charged a fine or forfeit. But most often they write to the Central Bank about the unilateral increase of the loan rate by the bank.

There is a special Internet reception on the Bank of Russia website for receiving applications from citizens.

If your appeal falls within the competence of the Bank of Russia, then it will certainly be considered along with other written requests.

The central bank responds to all requests, but often these responses are formal. The Bank of Russia is a supervisory, but not a punitive structure, and therefore usually refers to the fact that it cannot interfere with the operational activities of a particular credit institution, and directs the client to defend his rights in court.

Follow these tips if your complaint is not satisfied or you are not happy with a solution. Also, do not forget about the opportunity to contact law enforcement agencies and the Prosecutor's Office. Especially when it comes to illegal actions of collection organizations.

Write in the comments if you have ever complained about the bank. Tell us about how it was, what result you have achieved.