LLOYDS and Barclays were among top UK banking giants paying millions to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) in administrative fees in the last year.

The banking industry's 'Big Six' - Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, Natwest, Santander and Nationwide - paid the FOS a combined £38.8m in admin fees for the year ending 31 March 2025.

Lloyds topped the list at £12.6m, with Barclays second at just short of £9m, official figures seen by City AM show.

This came as the motor finance row, which Lloyds and Barclays have historical exposure to, dragged total complaints to the FOS to the highest levels since the PPI scandal.

Motor finance complaints jumped by near-500 per cent to north of 70,000 which triggered an over 50 per cent spike in the FOS' total caseload to 305,726.

Banking industry body UK Finance had previously sounded the alarm on the FOS fees system and said it opened the door to penalising firms "disproportionately, particularly in the context of mass-generated complaints driven by professional representatives".

(c) 2025 City A.M., source Newspaper