Complaint examination

Under the applicable regulations, the following financial sector participants must comply with certain legal obligations in respect of complaints received from clients and process such complaints in a fair and equitable manner:

  • Insurers;
  • Trust companies, savings companies and financial services cooperatives;
  • Credit assessment agents;
  • Securities dealers and advisers;Businesses that act exclusively as investment fund managers are not subject to this obligation.
  • Firms, independent partnerships and independent representatives.

Complaints entry and reporting process

Since November 7, 2022, the way complaints are entered and reported has been harmonized. There is now only one complaint entry and reporting process, and one complaint reporting period, for the industry.

Complaint entries must be completed on the new “Complaint reporting” section, which is only accessible via AMF E-Services for businesses.

Log in to AMF E-Services, or for answers to any questions you may have, contact our Information Centre.
 

Standardized reporting frequency

In order to reduce the compliance burden, there will now be only one complaint reporting period, i.e., from March 1 to May 1, for complaints received between January 1 and December 31 of the previous year.


What is a complaint?

A complaint is the expression of one of the following three elements where that element persists after having been considered and processed at the operational level with decision-making authority:

  • a reproach in respect of the organization;
  • the identification of real or potential harm that a consumer has sustained or may sustain; or
  • a request for remedial action.

A complaint must be in writing so that it can be kept on file. If a consumer makes a verbal complaint, the person taking charge of the complaint must document it so that it can be kept on file.

The initial expression of dissatisfaction by a consumer, whether in writing or otherwise, will not be considered a complaint where the issue is settled in the  regular course of the business’s activities. However, if the consumer remains dissatisfied and the complaint officer designated in the organization's policy takes charge of the dissatisfaction, it will be considered a complaint.

However, the organization must refrain from any undue delay in referring a complaint to a higher level solely for the purpose of circumventing the requirement to enter the complaint in the complaint report.

Organizations without a multilevel structure for processing complaints must consider a client’s dissatisfaction to be a complaint when it persists after a reasonable attempt has been made by the business to settle the matter.

Information

For information concerning your complaint reporting, please contact us:

Québec City: 418-525-0337, 4122
Montréal: 514-395-0337, 4122
Toll-free: 1-877-525-0337, 4122
Email: [email protected]

End of the Information