Reports by the Complaints Service are non-binding and cannot be appealed
03/09/2026
When a bank customer is unhappy and files a complaint with the Banco de España, the case is assessed and the customer receives a reasoned report on the dispute.
Does that report mean your bank has to refund the money claimed? Can it be appealed if one of the parties disputes it? Does the Banco de España have to follow the same standard format in every case?
In short, a reasoned report from the Complaints Service has the following four main features.
- (i) It is a technical, specialist opinion. It assesses whether the bank acted in line with regulations governing transparency and bank customer protection, as well as with good banking practice and accepted financial usage.
- (ii) It cannot be appealed. It is not legally binding on the bank, so it doesn’t oblige the bank to change its conduct or pay the amount claimed, even if the Banco de España finds that the bank acted incorrectly.
- (iii) After receiving the report, the bank has a set period to say whether it accepts or rejects the Banco de España’s decision. If it accepts the report, it must provide documents showing that it has put matters right. This means that a bank may accept the Banco de España’s position, correct its conduct and reach an agreement with the customer or it can reject the findings.
- (iv) There’s no fixed or standard template for these reports. The rules set out how the complaints procedure works, but there is no one set format for the reports themselves.
It’s important to note that more than half of admitted complaints had an outcome that was favourable to the complainant, either because the bank withdrew its opposition or accepted the customer’s claim, or because the Banco de España found in the customer’s favour. And although a favourable report doesn’t oblige a bank to put things right, it can often be an important supporting element if the customer later decides to take the matter to court.
There are also cases in which the Banco de España may refuse to admit a complaint and therefore won’t issue a reasoned report. This can happen, for example, if the matter is already before the courts or in arbitration; if the customer is asking for a contractual clause, fee or interest rate to be declared void, unfair or usurious; if the customer is seeking compensation for damages; if the customer has not first complained to the bank or has not waited for the legal deadline for a response to pass; if the complaint raises issues that were not previously submitted to the bank’s customer service department; if an identical complaint has already been filed and resolved; or if the complaint is submitted too late.
