Financial Ombudsman: Armenian citizens don't know their right

PanARMENIAN.Net - The main problem that Financial Ombudsman has come across from the creation of this institute is citizens' weak literacy of their rights.



"People turn to us with different issues and we try to address each to appropriate body," Armenian Financial Ombudsman Piruz Sargsyan told reporters when presenting the quarterly activity report.



She said that her work would be more productive if citizens were more informed about their rights and responsibilities. "In this respect, we are cooperating with different organizations, like Central Bank and commercial banks, as well as PR campaigns to raise awareness of the population," she explained.



According to Piruz Sargsyan, for the first quarter of 2009, 67 applications were submitted to the office of Financial Ombudsman, and 43 applications just in March. According to the law, 30 applications were reviewed by Ombudsman, including 17 applications that were presented without initial representation to a financial organization. That is why Ombudsman office employees explained to applicants their rights and responsibilities. "We ask them first apply with complain to appropriate financial organization and only in case of rejection apply to Ombudsman office," Sargsyan said.



The Ombudsman said there were only 3 applications made by phone. "We gave explanations to applicants on application forms to finance organization and as a result these applications didn't come to Ombudsman office," she added.



Out of 43 applications received in March, 19 were supposed to be reviewed, for 10 to review, client hasn't initially applied to finance organization, 3 claims were satisfied, 2 out of 6 were related to payments, 2 to time deposits, one to insurance compensation and one to credit agreement.



Ms. Sargsyan said that according to the law finance Ombudsman has a right to make 3 types of decisions: to satisfy the claim, to reject and partial satisfaction. "In our work we follow the international practice: prior to make a decision we try to get the conciliation between finance organization and clients," said Sargsyan.



According to Piruz Sargsyan, her office was founded and started to work on January 24, 2009 in accordance with the law on Financial Ombudsman and is the first in CIS. "Experience shows we stepped into market in time and in near future will be able to satisfy the requirement existed before the launch of Ombudsman office," Sargsyan concluded.