Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)
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145. To ask the Minister for Finance the length of time it takes the Office of the Financial Ombudsman to take a complaint from initial submission, to investigation and finally to resolution. [23671/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Firstly, I must point out that the Financial Services Ombudsman is independent in the performance of his statutory functions. It would not be appropriate for me to comment on how he performs his duties. I have been advised by the Financial Services Ombudsman that in respect of the work undertaken by the Financial Services Ombudsman during the 1st quarter of 2013 (1 Jan 2013 to 31 March 2013) the average period from the initial submission to commencement of formal investigation was in the order of 3 - 4 months.

On the issue more generally the average period from the commencement of formal investigation to conclusion of formal findings was in the range of 3 - 9 months, depending upon the complexities of the issues. Every complaint to the Financial Services Ombudsman is dealt with on its own merits and consequently the timeframe can vary considerably in accordance with the nature of the particular issues. In the course of investigation, the parties to a complaint are asked to present all appropriate evidence and are given every opportunity to make all submissions required in relation to the pertinent issues.