First, name the complaint properly

"My investments went down" is not, by itself, grounds — markets fall, and risk you agreed to take isn't mis-selling. Complaints that succeed are about suitability and conduct: advice that didn't fit your circumstances or stated risk tolerance, costs or risks not properly disclosed, being moved out of valuable guarantees without justification, churning, delays that cost you money, or promises in writing the product couldn't keep. Write one paragraph: what they did, why it was wrong for you, what it cost. That paragraph drives everything below.

The escalation ladder

  1. Complain to the firm, in writing. Authorised firms must run a formal complaints process. Send your paragraph plus documents, use the word "complaint" explicitly, and keep copies. The firm generally has 8 weeks to give a final response.
  2. Escalate to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) — free, independent, no lawyer needed — if the response is unsatisfactory or 8 weeks pass. Deadlines matter: generally within 6 months of the firm's final response, and within 6 years of the event (or 3 years from when you reasonably knew of a problem). FOS can order redress designed to put you back where suitable advice would have left you — for investment and pension complaints the award limit is in the hundreds of thousands (it rises over time; check the current cap).
  3. If the firm has gone bust: the FSCS steps in, paying compensation for bad regulated advice from failed firms — up to £85,000 per person per firm for advice claims. Claiming is free and directly via FSCS.
  4. If it's fraud rather than bad advice: Action Fraud and your bank immediately — speed matters far more than paperwork. The toolkit covers scam response.

Never pay to complain

Claims management companies advertise heavily for "mis-sold pension/SIPP compensation" and take a large slice of any award — for filling in the same free forms you can. FOS and FSCS are designed for ordinary consumers, the processes are genuinely free, and both publish plain-English guidance. The only case for paid help is genuine complexity, and then a solicitor with a clear fee beats a percentage-take CMC.

What makes complaints succeed

  • The suitability report is the battlefield. The firm's own written justification either matches your circumstances at the time or it doesn't. Ask the firm for your file — they must provide it.
  • Contemporaneous evidence wins: emails, meeting notes, the risk questionnaire you filled in. "I told them I was cautious" lands harder when their own form says it.
  • Quantify the loss simply: what you'd have had with suitable action vs what you have. FOS does the formal calculation; your version frames it.
  • Stay factual, stay chronological. Anger reads as noise; timelines read as evidence.

Common questions

Can I complain about investment losses?
Not about market falls as such — investment risk you knowingly accepted is yours. You can complain that the level of risk was wrong for you, that it wasn't explained, or that your instructions and circumstances were ignored. The test is the suitability of the advice, not the direction of markets.
How long does a Financial Ombudsman complaint take?
Straightforward cases commonly resolve in around 3–6 months; complex pension and SIPP cases can run a year or more. The firm-level stage adds up to 8 weeks before that. Slow is the price of free and binding — and most cases settle without a formal final decision.
What if my adviser was an appointed representative, not the firm itself?
Complain to the principal firm — it carries regulatory responsibility for its appointed representatives' advice. The Register entry for the AR names the principal. If the principal has failed, the FSCS route applies as usual.

Sources and further reading

Financial Ombudsman Service — how to complain · FSCS — making a claim · FCA — how to complain

About this guide: general education only — not regulated advice or a personal recommendation, and FinancialAdvisor.co.uk is not an FCA-authorised firm. Rules change and depend on circumstances. For advice tailored to you, consult an FCA-authorised adviser.