Complying with the Code
The Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice
The Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice (the Code) sets out the minimum service standards that customers can expect from customer owned banking institutions.
It is a set of clauses that guide how customer owned banking institutions who subscribe to the Code will act when providing banking services and products to consumers.
These clauses form the basis of the Code’s specific obligations.
The Code sets out a framework for principles of conduct that require customer owned banking institutions to be open, fair and honest in their dealings with consumers.
The Code also provides timeframes for customer owned banking institutions to respond to complaints and requests for information.
Subscriber compliance with the Code is assessed annually through our monitoring program. Under our Charter, we can impose a range of sanctions to enforce compliance.
The 2022 Code v2.0 came into effect on 28 October 2023.
The most recent annual report identifies common breaches of the Code. These include compliance with:
- Privacy obligations
- High customer service and standards
- Legal obligations
- Responsible lending practices
- Provision of information and communication
Please contact us if you need guidance on Code obligations. We are happy to help.
You can read a full copy of the Customer Owned Banking Code of Practice here.