Adviser network Sesame received almost double the number of customer complaints in the second half of last year than it did in the same period the year before, data from the Financial Conduct Authority have revealed.
In its complaints data for H2 2012, the financial services regulator reveals 1,978 complaints were opened against Sesame in the final six months of 2012, up from 1,060 in H2 2011.
The news corresponds with data from the Financial Ombudsman Service showing the adviser network recieved 263 complaints for the period, representing an increase of 87 per cent year-on-year.
Sesame boasts some 2,000 advisers, meaning the network received on average one complaint per adviser in the six months between July and December 2012.
In spite of the rise in the overall number of complaints, however, the percentage of complaints for the period which were upheld fell from 24 per cent to 15 per cent. This perhaps reinforces claims across the sector of a rise in vexatious complaints in recent months.
Companies with the most customers will often also receive the most complaints, the FCA says in its report. As such, the top five spots were taken up by big banks with Barclays receiving 414,302, Lloyds TSB Bank receiving 349,386, Bank of Scotland receiving 338,912, MBNA receiving 270,486 and Santander UK receiving 237,923.
All five banks listed above experienced a decrease in the number of complaints received compared to the first half of the year, with Lloyds leading the way with a 19 per cent decrease since H1 2012.
Alongside Sesame, fellow network Openwork was listed in the FCA firm-specific list, which details those firms which received more than 500 complaints. For the second half of 2012 the firm was the subject of 710 new complaints, a rise on the previous year when it was not listed.
Personal Touch also made the list with 523 complaints. This is up from the second half of 2011 when it registered less than 500 complaints and did not make the list, although again the absolute number is not known.
Uphold rates relating to the period were 23 per cent for Openwork and 14 per cent for Personal Touch.
Elsewhere in the advisory sector, Equiniti Financial Services had 1,291 complaints opened against it in the second half of 2012, up about 10 per cent on H2 2011 when it received 1,173 complaints. The company’s uphold rate fell from 32 per cent in H2 2011 to 20 per cent in H2 2012.
