Choosing a dispute resolution scheme (DRS)
Who must join a DRS, and the schemes to choose from
If you provide financial services to retail clients, you must:
- belong to an approved dispute resolution scheme (DRS) in relation to those services, and
- record your DRS details on the register.
On this page
What a DRS is
A dispute resolution scheme (or DRS) deals with customer complaints or disputes with their FSP. All DRSs have rules about their complaints process, what you have to do and the kinds of complaints they deal with.
Who can use a DRS
If you're an individual customer of an FSP or a small organisation with 19 or fewer full-time equivalent employees you can take a complaint to the FSPs dispute resolution scheme.
It's free to do this, but you must take your complaint to the FSP first.
How to find out which scheme applies
There are 4 approved schemes. You can find out which scheme an FSP belongs to when you search this register.
- Once you have found your FSP, click on their name to view their full details.
- When you’re viewing the FSP’s details, select the ‘Financial Services’ tab.
- You can see details of:
- each financial service the FSP is registered to provide, and
- which dispute resolution scheme(s) they belong to (including the address of the DRS and a link to their website).
Who must belong to a DRS
Unless an exemption applies, if you're an FSP providing financial services to retail clients you must belong to an approved DRS. This includes financial advisers.
If you're required to belong to a scheme you must also record the DRS membership details on the register within:
- 10 working days of registration, and/or
- 10 working days of being engaged by a FAP.
If you don't, you face being deregistered.
You'll be invoiced by the DRS you join for the fees they charge.
Financial adviser engaged by a FAP
When you are a financial adviser providing regulated financial advice on behalf of a financial advice provider (FAP), it’s important to agree whose DRS you’ll operate under – a scheme provided by the FAP, or your own.
- If the FAP agrees to cover you under their DRS membership, they'll confirm that when they record the engagement on the register.
- If they don't agree to cover you, you will need to join a DRS in your own name in relation to the financial advice service. You must also record your DRS details on the FSP Register within 10 working days of becoming engaged.
Whatever agreement you reach, you’ll need to make sure that you have a clear and comprehensive process to resolve any disputes that may arise, and that your clients understand which DRS they should use if they require assistance.
If you offer other financial services to retail clients, you need to join a DRS in your own name in relation to those services. You must also add the membership details in the DRS section of their registration within 10 working days of selecting the services.
Who does not need to belong to a DRS
You don't need to join a DRS if you:
- only provide services to wholesale clients, such as other businesses, professional investors, large companies, related companies and Crown agencies
- issue or promote securities to the public from time to time, but it's not your principal business.
Approved dispute resolution schemes
There are 4 schemes approved by Consumer Protection to provide financial dispute resolution services. They are: