Question 31
Can I appeal against the Ombudsman’s Determination?
A Determination is final and binding on all parties to a complaint subject to a successful appeal on a point of law. This means we cannot change the Determination, except for minor errors such as typing mistakes. You can find out more information about Determinations by visiting our ‘Determination Factsheet’.
If you want a Determination changed you must appeal to the High Court in England or Wales, the Court of Session in Scotland or the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland.
This is a statutory right and you do not need our consent to lodge an appeal.
In England and Wales appeals against Determinations or directions of an Ombudsman require the permission of the High Court.
The person lodging the appeal will need to satisfy the Court that the appeal has a real prospect of success or that there is some other compelling reason why it should be heard.
This requirement does not currently affect appeals in Northern Ireland. In Scotland an appeal follows a different process, known as a “case stated”.
Any directions made by an Ombudsman can still be enforced pending an appeal unless the court orders a stay or sist (which applies in Scotland).
To find out more, visit the ‘How to appeal’ page.
Related questions
Only an Ombudsman’s Determination is final, binding and enforceable in court (unless there is a successful appeal on a point of law).
At The Pensions Ombudsman, wherever possible we resolve complaints informally at an early stage, frequently before the issues have been formally considered by the parties.
If your complaint is investigated by an Adjudicator, they will investigate and determine complaints that were not resolved by the parties or by us at an early resolution stage. They will write to all parties and give their view on the complaint.
If they think nothing has gone wrong, they will explain why. Or, if an Adjudicator thinks something has gone wrong, they will explain their thinking and say what should be done to put things right.
Everyone involved in the complaint will have a chance to comment on the Adjudicator’s view.
If all parties accept the Adjudicator's view and proposal to put things right, we will close the case.
If any one of the parties to the complaint does not agree with the Adjudicator's view, they can ask for the complaint to be referred to the Ombudsman with a view to a final Determination being made.
If you have some feedback on how we could improve our service or think something may have gone wrong, please contact us.
Details on how to do this can be found on our ‘contact us’ page in the ‘Unhappy with our service’ section. .