Investigator

Financial Ombudsman Service; Manchester; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 33,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension

Life assurance

Private medical insurance

Dental cover

Cycle to work scheme

Holiday entitlement 25 days

Job summary

Financial Ombudsman Service is seeking an Investigator for Consumer Credit in Manchester. The role involves training in the academy, then handling a caseload under supervision, to reach fair and reasoned decisions on consumer disputes with financial providers.

Hybrid working, with four in-office days per fortnight, and a London intro for induction. You’ll join a UK-wide not-for-profit organisation that resolves disputes between consumers and financial service providers, with a strong focus on

Qualifications

• Demonstrable experience working with Consumer Credit products
• Ability to make fair and balanced decisions with clear reasoning
• Excellent communication skills, including clear written English
• Experience delivering customer service and handling difficult conversations
• Analytical thinking with problem-solving abilities
• Strong organisational skills and ability to prioritise workload
• Experience working to targets or SLAs

Responsibilities

• Investigate complaints about Consumer Credit products
• Manage your caseload and prioritise work to meet targets
• Maintain relationships with customers and financial businesses
• Assess evidence and apply relevant rules to reach fair decisions
• Communicate findings clearly in written responses

Skills

Consumer credit products

Fair and balanced decisions

Communication skills

Written English

Customer service experience

Analytical problem solving

Prioritise workload

Meeting targets

Education

Consumer Credit qualifications

Job description

Looking for a new challenge? Take a look at our current vacancies. If you see a vacancy that is right for you, we encourage you to apply!

Investigator, Consumer Credit – Manchester

Make a positive difference to financial services

Contract: Permanent

Working hours: full time (35 hours pw) and part time (28 hours pw)

Salary: £32,577 pa (full time), £26,061.60 pa (part time)

Reporting to: Ombudsman Manager

Start date: 16th November 2026

Our current hybrid policy requires 4 days per fortnight in the office.

Join our ‘Becoming an Investigator’ recruitment network and be one of the first to hear about upcoming opportunities in your area: here

As part of your induction, you’ll need to spend your first week in our London office.

We will cover your expenses for your time in London.

About us The Financial Ombudsman Service is an independent, not-for-profit organisation that plays a vital role in UK financial services. Every day we help resolve disputes between consumers, or small businesses, and their financial service providers. The complaints we deal with vary. A customer might be having trouble with their bank account, struggling with payday loans, think an insurance pay out isn’t fair, or be worried about their mortgage. If we believe a customer hasn’t been treated fairly, we’ll ask the business to put things right. If we think the business isn’t at fault, we’ll explain why. The decisions we make have a huge impact: they can be life-changing for individuals, and they provide insights which are useful for financial businesses.

By joining us as an Investigator, you’ll play a key role in Consumer Credit products. Each case and each customer are different. No two days are ever the same and sometimes the work is demanding, but it’s a job that makes a real difference and you’ll be rewarded with generous benefits as well as job satisfaction.

Key responsibilities

As an Investigator new to the role, you’ll spend up to six months in our academy getting the training you need to make fair and reasonable decisions with certainty. After that, you’ll work as part of a team, supported by an Ombudsman Manager, overseeing your own caseload and prioritising your work.

• Investigating complaints about Consumer Credit products
• Managing your caseload effectively to reach targets
• Managing relationships with our customers – both consumers and financial businesses
• Examining evidence to get to the heart of each complaint
• Weighing up all sides of a story and assessing the relevant rules and regulations to make fair and reasonable decisions
• Communicating with empathy – listening carefully to both sides, asking the right questions and using sound judgement, and
• Communicating your findings clearly, explaining what you think and why through a clear and structured written response

Person specification

You’ll be a self-starter who can prioritise tasks and work well independently. You’ll have great people skills and an analytical, problem-solving mind. You may have experience in customer services, sales or retail, in a legal/paralegal role, or have worked in casework, claims or investigative work for another public agency.

Minimum (Essential) Criteria

• Demonstrable experience working in related Consumer Credit products
• Expertise making fair and balanced decisions, where you must articulate your thinking clearly
• Excellent communication skills, including a talent for listening and explaining things in clear language as well as good written English
• Experience providing excellent customer service with people who may be angry or upset
• Critical thinking, problem solving and finding constructive solutions
• Strong administrative skills and the ability to prioritise your workload
• History of working to meet targets or service level agreements

Desirable Criteria

• Knowledge of financial products
• Relevant qualifications within Consumer Credit
• Experience in decision making or investigative roles for example, legal, paralegal, casework or claims

Why the Financial Ombudsman Service?

We’re a UK-wide service, with strong values and a diverse workforce, where you can be your authentic self. We’re committed to being a great place to work and to recruiting people from all backgrounds. So, as well as a competitive salary, we offer a great package of benefits, including: Core benefits including generous pension, life assurance, critical illness cover, income protection, personal accident cover, private medical insurance, virtual GP Optional benefits including travel insurance, technology scheme, cycle to work scheme, dining and lifestyle memberships, dental cover Holiday entitlement of 25 days, with the option to buy or sell extra days (full time equivalent) Discounts on your everyday shopping, from groceries and petrol to household goods and gift vouchers An Employee Assistance Program offering professional support with legal, health and money issues Opportunities for personal and career development Find out more about our work culture on our website, where we also have a dedicated careers page. You may also find it useful to check our LinkedIn page and Instagram.

Proud to be an inclusive employer

Reflecting the communities, we serve helps us provide the best service to our customers. Diversity and inclusion are fundamental to our success, so we welcome applications from women and other under-represented groups. As part of our commitment to the Race at Work Charter, we welcome applications from Black, Asian and other ethnic minority candidates. We are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader and, under the scheme, will progress a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria to interview. Interviews may be conducted via video, telephone, or an panel Interview, with some vacancies requiring an online assessment to measure the minimum criteria. You can find out more about our Diversity and inclusion strategy and plans on our website where you can also read our 2022 Diversity, Inclusion and Wellbeing report. Who we are… With fairness at the heart of everything we do, we embrace difference and treat everyone as equals. We’re a diverse organisation, but something we all share is our values. They’re central to the way we work – and work together. We’re an independent, not-for-profit organisation that sorts out disputes between financial businesses and their customers. We do this by making decisions that are fair – and feel fair to both sides. The Financial Ombudsman Service is an equal opportunities employer. All applicants will be treated in a fair and equal manner and in accordance with the law, regardless of gender, marital status, race, religion, colour, age, disability or sexual orientation. We’re committed to being a great place to work – attracting and developing people from the widest possible range of backgrounds. We want everyone to perform at their best and feel able to be themselves. We understand that if we’re diverse and inclusive, we’ll better understand different perspectives, which is fundamental to our job resolving financial complaints. You can read more about Diversity and Inclusion . We are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. Disabled applicants who fulfil the minimum criteria for the role will be progressed to the next stage of the process. You will need to demonstrate that you meet the minimum criteria in order to qualify for the Disability Confident scheme.