Media Room

FCAC Quarterly Statistics

Between January 1 and March 31, 2005, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC), received 5,473 contacts. This document provides a breakdown of the types of contacts FCAC received, the method used to contact FCAC and the province where the inquiries and complaints originated.

For the period January 1 - March 31, 2005
Consumer inquiries and complaints
	General inquiries	3,780
	General complaints	1,124
	Inquiries about compliance matters	5
	Complaints about compliance matters	147
Total consumer inquiries and complaints			5,056
	Media contacts		28
	Requests for Publications		226
Total consumer contacts ¹				5,310
Complaints and filings from financial institutions
	Self-reported complaints²		110
	Filings by financial institutions³		53
Total complaints and filings from financial institutions				163
Total contacts					5,473
Method of contact
	Phone calls			4,892
	Letters			173
	E-mails			277
	In-person visits			1
	Other⁴			130
Total					5,473

¹	Includes consumer inquiries and complaints, media contacts and requests for publications.
²	Includes consumer complaints that have been escalated to the reportable level of a financial institution’s internal complaint-handling process.
³	Includes documents that financial institutions are required to submit to FCAC, such as public accountability statements and branch closure filings.
⁴	Includes examinations, filings and cases initiated by FCAC.

Consumer Inquiries and Complaints

The following chart provides a breakdown of the types of consumer inquiries and complaints received for the period.

Inquiries and Complaints Chart [D]

¹	Includes generic inquiries and complaints that FCAC receives in its role as the source for reliable information. Examples include requests for information, copies of complaint-handling procedures for financial institutions and inquiries regarding the reputation or viability of a financial institution.
²	Includes inquiries and complaints about compliance matters, excluding self-reported complaints and filings by financial institutions.
³	Includes miscellaneous inquiries and complaints received regarding automated banking machines (ABMs), branch closures, credit bureau checks, complaint procedures, debit cards, electronic and telephone banking, estate matters, exchange rates, identity theft, interest rates, paper money, privacy, quality of service, service fees and tied selling.

The following graph provides a regional breakdown of contacts received for the period.

Inquiries and Complaints Bar Chart [D]

* The province or territory was not indicated by the consumer.

A table providing a detailed breakdown of the number of consumer contacts FCAC received by province and by category is available on our Web site. To view this table click here (opens in a new window).

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Compliance Matters

FCAC opens and reviews hundreds of compliance cases each year covering a wide range of consumer issues under federal financial legislation. If a compliance officer, after gathering the facts of a case, believes that a financial institution may have violated a consumer provision, the case is forwarded to the Commissioner for his review and a decision. The information below summarizes the number of compliance cases opened and closed between January 1 and March 31, 2005.

For the Period January 1 - March 31, 2005
Total number of compliance cases opened (Includes consumer and self-reported complaints)		252

Total number of compliance cases closed		264
(Includes cases outstanding from previous periods)
	Number of violations of the law	0
	Number of cases of non-compliance to a public commitment and Codes of Conduct	1
	Branch closure - Requests for meeting not granted	1

The Commissioner's Decisions are posted on our Web site to inform consumers about their rights when dealing with federally regulated financial institutions. They also provide an overview of the types of compliance issues FCAC has reviewed, and the work FCAC has been doing to protect financial consumers.

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		Last Modified: 2005-06-03	Important Notices