Complaints related to current accounts and credit cards saw an increase in the latter half of 2023, according to the city regulator.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) reported a total of 874,568 complaints about banking and credit cards during the second half of 2023, marking a 3.2% rise compared to the first half of the year. There was a 1% increase in complaints about current accounts between the first and second halves of 2023, with 515,336 grievances recorded in the latter half of the year.

Credit card complaints saw a more significant jump of 7.5% over the same period, with 217,032 complaints lodged in the second half of the year. In the insurance category of the FCA, motor and transport-related complaints also increased by 1%, totalling 281,082 in the second half of 2023.

Investment-related complaints also saw a rise of 3.4% when comparing the first and second halves of 2023, with 61,446 grievances recorded in the last six months of the year. However, complaints relating to pensions and insurance saw a decrease in the second half of the year.

Overall, financial services firms received 1.87 million complaints in the second half of 2023, which was a 1% decrease compared to the first half of the year. Since the peak of payment protection insurance (PPI) complaints in 2020, the number of complaints has remained relatively constant, according to the FCA.

The proportion of upheld complaints saw a drop from 61% in the first half of 2023 to 58% in the latter half of the same year. In the second half of 2023, approximately £259 million was paid out in compensation, marking a 10% increase compared to the first half of the year. The average payout rose to £203, up from £183 in the first half of 2023.

Every six months, the FCA releases data on complaints, which includes figures from firms that have reported 500 or more complaints within a six-month period, or firms that have reported 1,000 or more complaints annually. This data is used by the regulator to evaluate how well firms are treating their customers and to track changes in their performance over time.

According to the FCA's figures, here are the top three products that received the most complaints in the second half of 2023, along with their category and the number of complaints recorded:.

1. Current accounts (banking and credit cards), 515,336.

2. Motor and transport (insurance and pure protection), 281,082.

3. Credit cards (banking and credit cards), 217,032.