2022 Customer Complaint Appeal Office Annual Report Download Report (1.9 MB)
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Customer Complaint Appeal Office (CCAO)
The Customer Complaint Appeal Office reviews Canadian customer complaints that remain unresolved after the first two steps of BMO’s Complaint Handling process.
Ula Ubani is the Chief Ethics Officer and Head, Customer Complaint Appeals for BMO Financial Group. She is a seasoned industry senior leader with a reputation for simplifying complex situations and developing practical solutions for the benefit of all involved.
Ula and her team manage the escalation of unresolved Canadian customer complaints about BMO’s products or services. The team has been carefully chosen for their extensive knowledge and experience with customer complaints and financial services. Collectively the team has more than 60 years of complaints resolution experience across many industries and levels of complaint, from first line to external resolution services.
The CCAO is the final escalation step in BMO’s Complaint Handling process. Although the office has a broad mandate to investigate a wide range of financial services complaints, there are certain issues that fall outside of the mandate of the office which it cannot review. These matters typically include (but are not limited to) business and risk management decisions and matters that are before a court.
The CCAO does not report directly to any business area and is not involved in BMO’s business operations.
By requesting a review by the Customer Complaint Appeal Office (CCAO) of your concerns regarding BMO Financial Group, you acknowledge and agree to the terms of our review as follows:
You agree and acknowledge:
- to give us all the relevant information you have, or are aware of, at the beginning of our investigation
- to make yourself available to discuss your concerns
- to cooperate with our office and treat us with respect; if you do not, we will close our investigation
- we will discuss your concerns with the business
- we may access your personal and/or confidential information across all lines of business within BMO
- we may consult third parties in connection with your concerns
- we may disclose information to regulators or as required by law
- all statements made by any person, and all correspondence, notes, or other documents created in the course of our review (“Records”) are without prejudice, confidential and privileged
- you will not attempt to compel production of, seek access to, rely on, or introduce into evidence in any proceeding, the Records.
- you will not attempt to compel any employee of the CCAO to give evidence in any proceeding
- our response is confidential and solely to provide our views on your complaint. You will not use it for any other use, circulate it or otherwise publish it.
- we are not able to provide you with any professional advice, including legal and financial advice. If you require legal, financial or other advice, you will obtain it on your own.
- activity such as ongoing collections proceedings or account closures will not automatically cease while our office conduct
Legal action: If we review your concerns, you do not lose your right to sue BMO. However, the time limit for suing (called a limitation period) continues to run while we review your concerns. If you are considering commencing legal proceedings against BMO, we recommend that you contact a lawyer and obtain legal advice.
For the CCAO to review your concern, you must have first attempted to resolve your complaint by going through Steps 1 and 2 of BMO’s Complaint Handling process. Please review that process for details on how to contact the CCAO if you remain dissatisfied after the completion of those Steps.
Full details of BMO’s Complaint Handling process are outlined in the brochure titled: We’re here to help – Resolving Customer Complaints. It’s also available at any of BMO’s branches.
If you have completed Step 1 and 2 of BMO’s Complaint Handling process and are not satisfied, please contact us:
| complaint.appeal@bmo.com | |
| Phone: | 1-800-371-2541 |
| Fax: | 1-800-766-8029 |
| Mail: | Customer Complaint Appeal Office (CCAO) 1 First Canadian Place P.O. Box 150 Toronto, ON M5X 1H3 |