Terms of Reference

Scotiabank's Customer Complaints Appeals Office (the “CCAO”) provides an impartial and internal final review of unresolved complaints made by Scotiabank clients regarding Scotiabank’s operations in Canada. Scotiabank, for the purpose of these Terms of Reference, refers to The Bank of Nova Scotia and its domestic subsidiaries, including Tangerine Bank.

These Terms of Reference describe the principal powers and duties of the CCAO, the scope of its mandate and the process for investigating unresolved client complaints.

1.  The CCAO will conduct an impartial review and act as the non-binding arbiter of unresolved client complaints and will facilitate a fair resolution of the matter for the client and Scotiabank. The CCAO will:

a.  Act within these Terms of Reference;

b.  Determine which complaints fall within its mandate;

c.  Review unresolved complaints with a view to facilitate a fair resolution;

d.  Make recommendations to the client and Scotiabank to resolve complaints or reject

e.  Not provide legal, accounting, tax, investment or other similar professional advice.

2.  The CCAO’s designated employees have been delegated the power to review unresolved complaints, reject complaints and make recommendations for resolution of complaints.

3.  The CCAO will report any threat to Scotiabank staff, Scotiabank property, or any third party including the complainant themselves to the appropriate area within Scotiabank, and to the relevant external authorities.

The CCAO will review unresolved complaints so long as:

a. The client made a complaint in accordance with Scotiabank’s established Complaint Handling Policy (CHP) and Scotiabank has completed its investigation of the complaint in accordance with its CHP;

b. The client has escalated a complaint to the CCAO and:

(1)     confirms that they have: 

• been provided a copy of these Terms of Reference (“TORs”), 
• read and agreed to these TORs, 
• consented to the CCAO commencing an investigation, 
• agreed to maintain the confidentiality of the CCAO’s files and correspondence,
• where required, returned a signed Acknowledgement and Consent Agreement (as described below) within 14 days of receiving it, and
• where required, return a signed Letter of Direction (as described below) within 14 days of receiving it; OR

(2) has not indicated that they do not agree to be bound by these TORs within 48    (forty-eight) hours of being provided with a copy of them, which TORs include, among other things, an agreement by the client to maintain the confidentiality of the CCAO’s files and correspondence. 

The CCAO may, at its discretion, require the client to return a signed Acknowledgement and Consent Agreement prior to beginning an investigation.  In such cases, the CCAO will notify the client in writing, either via email or letter, that a signed Acknowledgement and Consent Agreement is required; 

c.  The CCAO is satisfied that the complaint has a material connection to Scotiabank’s operations in Canada; and

d.  The complaint is being pursued reasonably and not in a frivolous, vexatious or threatening manner.

The CCAO does not:

a. Review complaints about matters of general policy (such as interest rates, service fees or account closures). However, the CCAO may, at its discretion, review such complaints to determine whether proper procedures were followed;

b. Reverse or alter credit decisions. However, the CCAO may, at its discretion, review such complaints to determine whether proper procedures were followed by Scotiabank in making credit decisions;

c. Review matters that have previously been settled, that are or have been the subject of litigation with Scotiabank, are being handled by lawyers on behalf of Scotiabank or have already been decided by the courts, by an arbitrator, a regulator or any administrative tribunal; and

d. Review complaints related to transactions for which records no longer exist (usually no more than seven years, but sometimes less, depending on the nature of the records).

1. The CCAO requires all complaints to be submitted in writing (by mail or e-mail).

2. The CCAO will determine if the complaint falls within its mandate.  It also has discretion not to investigate a specific matter. If the CCAO determines that the complaint does not fall within its mandate or exercises its discretion not to investigate the complaint, it will send a letter to the client to explain its decision.

3. Following the initial review of the complaint, the CCAO may recommend that the complaint may be more appropriately dealt with by another process or institution, such as by arbitration or through the courts.

4. In certain circumstances (e.g., where an investigation was concluded within the previous 12 months), the CCAO may recommend that a complaint be re-reviewed prior to it initiating an investigation to account for any policy/ procedural changes which may have taken place since that time.

5. Following the initial review of a complaint, if the CCAO determines that the complaint is one that will be investigated, the file will be assigned to a CCAO employee for investigation upon either: 

• 48 (forty-eight) hours after a copy of the TORs have been sent to the client by e-mail and the client has not notified the CCAO that they do not consent to the TORs within that 48 hour period; or
• Where, at the discretion of the CCAO, the CCAO has requested the client sign and return an Acknowledgment and Consent Agreement and the client has done so.
• Where, at the discretion of the CCAO, the CCAO has requested that the client sign and return a Letter of Direction in circumstances where the client has requested the CCAO to discuss their complaint with an authorized third party.

6. The CCAO has complete control over the conduct and procedure of the investigation, including contacting any person or viewing any documents or information it deems appropriate. The CCAO requires the client and Scotiabank to cooperate with its investigation and may require both to provide any, or all, relevant documentation and/or information to the CCAO.

7. The investigation will be conducted based upon the documentation, information and any other evidence provided by the client and Scotiabank, and may include interviews with both parties and/or others. The CCAO may also retain legal counsel, as well as consult third party experts and/or consultants (as required) to assist with the investigation. If the CCAO receives notice that legal proceedings have been initiated by the complainant at any time during the investigation, the CCAO will terminate its investigation.

8. At any time during the process, the CCAO may attempt to facilitate a mutually agreeable resolution or make a recommendation for settlement of the complaint. 

         a. If an offer is to be made to the client, the CCAO will send a letter that explains the reasons for the offer and provide the client with a reasonable amount of time to accept or reject it. If the client accepts the offer, the CCAO will require the client to sign a Full and Final Release (F&FR), which shall include a confidentiality clause. Once the signed F&FR is received, the CCAO will make the necessary arrangements to facilitate any payment or other resolution agreed upon by the client and Scotiabank.

         b. If the CCAO determines that compensation or other resolution is not warranted, a final written response will be sent to the client outlining the reasons for its decision.

9.  The CCAO shall not be bound by any previous recommendation made by its office or by any predecessor in that office.

10. The CCAO’s final response will be sent to the client in writing, but a facilitated settlement may be conducted using other communication channels (e.g., telephone).

11. The CCAO’s final response letter will include the contact information for the appropriate external complaints body, which is the next step in the established complaint escalation process:  the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI).

12. The CCAO will maintain a webpage on the Scotiabank website that will include current contact information for the CCAO, these TORs and the previous year’s CCAO Annual Report, which sets out the number and nature of complaints dealt with by the CCAO.

Confidentiality of the CCAO process is an important and long-standing principle. It helps to ensure the CCAO’s impartiality and facilitates cooperation throughout the investigation.

By submitting a complaint to the CCAO, the client agrees to allow the CCAO to share or discuss any personal, financial and confidential information provided to the CCAO, including a copy (or the details) of the complaint, with employees of Scotiabank and with any other individuals or companies, including legal counsel, third party experts and/or consultants, who can assist with, are involved in, or affected by the complaint, for the purpose of investigating the complaint.  The CCAO and its staff may also request information from such parties.

The Scotiabank CCAO process is a confidential, without prejudice and privileged voluntary process. Any statements made by the participating parties (including the client, Scotiabank employees, and CCAO employees), as well as any correspondence, notes and/or other documents created in the course of this process, including the CCAO file, are confidential, without prejudice and privileged (“CCAO Records”). This means any communications between the client and the CCAO may not be shared by the client with any third party (except a professional advisor such as a lawyer or accountant). Furthermore, this also means that the client cannot compel the production of, seek access to, rely on, disclose, refer to or introduce the CCAO Records into evidence in any legal or other proceeding.  This also means any employees of the CCAO, cannot be compelled to give evidence in or participate in any legal or other proceedings.

As outlined above, the CCAO may share or discuss personal, financial and confidential information provided to the CCAO, including a copy (or the details) of the complaint, with employees of Scotiabank, legal counsel, third party experts and/or consultants, and with any other individuals or companies who can assist with, are involved in or affected by the complaint, for the purpose of investigating the complaint.  The CCAO may also request information from the parties.  In doing so, the files of the CCAO remain confidential and protected by privilege and this protection is not waived.

The client acknowledges that these confidentiality terms shall survive the termination of this agreement, including where the client has indicated that they withdraw their consent, whether such consent was given expressly or implied. In cases where the client has withdrawn their consent during the course of the investigation, the investigation will cease, and the client will be provided the contact information for the appropriate external complaints body, which is the next step in the established complaint escalation process: the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI).