Financial consumer protection aims to ensure fair treatment of financial consumers, to promote the provision of accurate and honest information about financial products and services, and to ensure products are designed to meet the interests and objectives of consumers. It also aims to guarantee that financial services providers act responsibly and in the best interest of consumers, and to ensure consumers have access to adequate redress mechanisms when needed. Financial consumer protection plays an important role, alongside financial inclusion and financial literacy, in supporting financial resilience and the well-being of individuals, families and communities, financial stability and, ultimately, sustainable and inclusive growth.
This report sets out the findings of the review of the financial consumer protection supervisory functions of the Central Bank of Ireland. The review was conducted against the G20/OECD High-level Principles on Financial Consumer Protection, the international standard for financial consumer protection. OECD Financial Consumer Protection reviews offer countries and/or public authorities a comprehensive assessment of their financial consumer protection framework based on original analysis and international practices. The main output of this review is a set of recommendations tailored to the specific situation and needs of the Central Bank of Ireland and designed to function as a guiding tool to further strengthen its financial consumer protection supervisory functions.
To carry out the review, the OECD conducted research and met with relevant stakeholders. The review was developed by the OECD in close co-operation with the Central Bank and the OECD benefitted from inputs and discussions with relevant teams of the Central Bank and relevant Irish public authorities, and representatives of consumers and industry.
The review was prepared by Tommaso Majer under the oversight of Miles Larbey, Head of the Financial Consumer Protection, Education and Inclusion Unit and Serdar Çelik, Head of the Capital Markets and Financial Institutions Division within the OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs. Matthew Soursourian also from the Financial Consumer Protection, Education and Inclusion Unit provided valuable comments. Editorial and communication support was provided by Liv Gudmundson, Thomas Dannequin, Eva Abbott and Flora Monsaingeon-Lavuri. Katerina Kodlova provided support to the project.