Complaints about investment business work, insolvency practice and audit work
Details on how to make a complaint about investment business work, insolvency practice or audit work.
Complaints about investment business work
In order to carry out investment business work, a firm must be:
- authorised by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), or
- for certain types of work, licensed by a Designated Professional Body such as the Institute
The firm will give you details of its authorisation or licence in an engagement letter and a legend on the firm’s notepaper will show whether it is authorised or licensed.
If your complaint is about investment business work, please set out your complaint in a letter to the firm’s compliance partner, senior partner or other individual named in your engagement letter. If the firm is unable to resolve the complaint to your satisfaction, then you can complain to the Institute if the firm is licensed by us.
FSA authorised firms
If the firm is authorised by the FSA, you can find details of the FSA’s complaints-handling arrangements.
Investors seeking compensation
If you are an investor seeking compensation, once you have exhausted all other avenues and if the matter is about investment business conducted by a licensed firm, you may apply to the Chartered Accountants' Compensation Scheme.
Complaints about insolvency practitioners licensed by the ICAEW
Individuals must be licensed insolvency practitioners to take insolvency appointments. Not all insolvency practitioners are licensed by this Institute. We can only deal with insolvency-related complaints against ICAEW licence holders, so please contact us to find out if the insolvency practitioner holds an ICAEW licence.
ICAEW complaints helpline
If you are not able to resolve your complaint with an ICAEW licensed insolvency practitioner directly, please call our complaints helpline on +44 (0)1908 546235.
Complaints about audit work
If a firm has signed an audit report as 'registered auditor' under the Companies Act 1989, it will be registered and regulated by a Recognised Supervisory Body such as this Institute. You can find out which body registers the firm from the legend on its note paper.
To check which body registers the firm, call 0131 347 0100 and ask for the Joint Audit Register.
ICAEW complaints helpline
If you are unable to resolve your complaint with the registered auditor directly, and the firm is registered with this Institute for audit work, please call our complaints helpline on +44 (0)1908 546235.