4 May 2017
By Bryan Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
PTSB Appeals process underlines need for strong watchdog role
Rigorous independent oversight of the handling by banks of the tracker mortgage scandal is essential, according to Fianna Fáil’s Finance Spokesperson, Michael McGrath.
Deputy McGrath was commenting following receipt of a parliamentary reply confirming that one of the appeals panels set up by Permanent TSB following their tracker mortgage debacle has upheld, either fully or in part, every appeal submitted by a customer.
Carrigaline TD Michael McGrath
“The most striking thing from the figures provided is that every single decision made by Permanent TSB’s Independent Review Panel has been to uphold the customer’s appeal in full or in part.
“This is essentially an admission that the correct decision was not made in the first place. The fact that some appeals have been upheld where customers lost their home directly as a result of being wrongly denied a tracker mortgage rate is truly shocking.
“This is a significant revelation and calls into question the way in which banks are handling the scandal of customers being denied their contractual right to a tracker rate. This reinforces my view that the Central Bank needs to adopt a rigorous approach to ensure that the 10,000 customers currently caught up in the tracker examination across various banks are dealt with in a fair manner.
“The Central Bank must ensure that the appeals process across all the banks is truly independent so that justice is served for the customers as quickly as possible,” concluded McGrath.
