Bank of Lithuania
Lietuviškai

Complaints against a financial service provider

  2. Supervision of financial market participants
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A complaint is a written application from an individual stating that their rights or legitimate interests have been violated in relation to a possible breach of law by a financial market participant. Lietuvos bankas handles requests and complaints from individuals in accordance with the Rules for the examination of requests and complaints of individuals and the provision of services to them at Lietuvos bankas (270.3 KB ).   Submit a complaint
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Which of the two procedures to choose: a complaint or a dispute procedure?

The examination of complaints and settlement of disputes are separate procedures regulated by different legislation, with different time limits during which actions varying in nature are carried out and/or decisions are taken.

Which of the two procedures to choose?

 

Examination of a complaint

Settlement of a dispute

What is the role of Lietuvos bankas?

It performs the market supervision function.

It settles disputes between consumers and financial market participants out of court.

 

What legislation is the examination of complaints and the settlement of disputes at Lietuvos bankas based on?

Article 7 of the Republic of Lithuania Law on the Bank of Lithuania

 

Rules for the Examination of Requests and Complaints of Individuals and the Provision of Services to Them at the Bank of Lithuania

Article 47 of the Republic of Lithuania Law on the Bank of Lithuania

 

Section Six of the Republic of Lithuania Law on Consumer Protection

 

Rules for the Out-of-Court Procedure of Settlement of the Disputes between Consumers and Financial Market Participants in the Bank of Lithuania

Who can apply?

Natural and legal persons.

 

Only natural persons who use a certain financial service provided to them to meet their personal, family or household needs rather than their business or professional activity needs.

What does Lietuvos bankas consider?

It assesses the compliance of financial market participants’ decisions and/or actions with legislation regulating the financial market.

 

In examining complaints, it does not resolve disagreements and/or disputes of an individual nature.

It assesses whether a decision taken by a financial market participant is reasonable and whether a consumer has incurred losses because of this decision. In other words, consumer claims to a financial market participant arising from the financial services agreement are taken into account (e.g. reimbursement of unjustifiable write-offs of disputed payments, compensation for damages, recognition of an event as insured, payment of insurance claims, etc.).

 

In settling consumer disputes, it does not carry out inspections in order to determine compliance with the requirements laid down in legislation regulating the financial market.

What actions does Lietuvos bankas take?

 

It assesses factual circumstances indicated in a complaint, presents a conclusion on a potential violation of legislation regulating the financial market and specifies supervisory actions it has taken or plans to take.

 

Factual circumstances may not be assessed if that is not in line with the aims of risk-based financial market supervision carried out by Lietuvos bankas. 

After assessing the information provided, it takes one of the following recommendatory decisions:

  • to satisfy a claim;
  • to partly satisfy a claim;
  • to dismiss a claim.

 

What are the time limits for examining an application?

A complaint is examined within 20 working days.

If a case is complicated, the time limit for the examination of a complaint may be extended for another 10 working days.

It is examined within five working days if a dispute has to be settled at Lietuvos bankas, and the applicant is informed thereof within three working days.

Upon examining the information provided, a recommendatory decision is taken within 90 calendar days.

The average out-of-court settlement of consumer disputes at Lietuvos bankas lasts 80 days.

What are the possibilities for appealing against a reply received from Lietuvos bankas?

A reply is appealed against within one month from the date of submission of the reply of Lietuvos bankas to the Vilnius Regional Administrative Court (Žygimantų g. 2, LT-01102 Vilnius).

The decision is recommendatory in nature and is not subject to appeal.

Nevertheless, even if Lietuvos bankas has taken a decision, the parties to a dispute (the applicant and a financial service provider) retain the right to apply to a court.

Where can I find detailed information on the procedures?

https://www.lb.lt/en/complaints-against-a-financial-service-provider

https://www.lb.lt/en/dbc-settle-a-dispute-with-a-financial-service-provider

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When to file a complaint?

You can file a complaint if:

  1. You are a natural or legal person using a particular service of a financial undertaking supervised by Lietuvos bankas;
  2. You believe that a financial market participant has breached regulatory requirements related to the provision of financial services;
  3. You have become aware of a potential violation of your rights or legitimate interests and have submitted a written claim to the financial market participant stating the circumstances of the complaint and your claim but have not been able to resolve the situation amicably or have not received a reply within 15 business days.

What is the procedure for filing a complaint?

  1. Before filing a complaint with Lietuvos bankas, you should first contact the financial market participant in writing and state the circumstances of the complaint and your claim.
  2. Upon receipt of your notice, the financial market participant must reply to you within 15 business days.
  3. If you are not satisfied with the reply or if you do not receive any reply within 15 business days, you will be entitled to contact Lietuvos bankas by completing and signing a complaint form (40.8 KB ).
  4. After assessing the information provided, Lietuvos bankas will provide you with a reply within 20 business days. In a complicated case, the time limit can be extended for another 10 business days.

How to file a complaint?

You can file a complaint in one of the following ways:

IMPORTANT! Whichever way you choose, the complaint and its attachments must be signed and submitted in the official Lithuanian or English language.

For general inquiries, you can contact us by telephone: +370 526 80 029, +370 612 69 200, +370 525 12763 (for international callers) or +370 800 50 500 (toll-free information line for calls from Lithuania), Monday to Thursday from 08:00 to 17:00, Friday from 08:00 to 15:45 or by visiting Lietuvos bankas at: Totorių g. 4, Vilnius.

Information that must be provided in the complaint

  • The name of the institution to which the complaint is addressed;
  • The name and surname, address and contact details (telephone number and/or email address, etc.) of the person, name and surname of the representative (for a natural person) or the name, legal entity code, registered address, name and surname, job title and contact details of the representative (telephone number and/or email address, etc.) (for a legal person);
  • The name and surname, job title of the natural person or the name, code and registered office, if known, of the legal person whose act or omission is contested;
  • Names and surnames, place of residence (for natural persons) and/or names, codes, registered address (for legal persons) of the third parties concerned, if known;
  • The specific act, omission or decision contested and the date on which it was carried out (adopted);
  • The factual circumstances on which the individual relies in support of their claim and the supporting documents;
  • The rights or legitimate interests of the individual affected by the contested act, omission or decision;
  • The date on which the individual became aware of the contested violations;
  • The individual’s claim;
  • If the complaint concerns actions of a financial market participant, a copy of the financial market participant’s reply to the individual and, if no reply was received from the financial market participant within the time limit laid down by legislation governing the financial market, a copy of the individual’s application to the financial market participant must be attached;
  • The list of attached documents (if any);
  • The place and date of the complaint.

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Lietuvos bankas does not initiate an inspection on the basis of a complaint received if the examination of the facts indicated in the complaint is not in line with the objectives of risk-based supervision. In such cases, Lietuvos bankas collects and uses the information set out in the complaint when drawing up supervisory programmes, planning routine inspections, thematic analyses, surveys of financial market participants, meetings, etc. Thus, although Lietuvos bankas considers all complaints important, not all complaints are subject to an inspection of a financial market participant.

If you believe that a financial market participant may have infringed the regulatory requirements applicable to it:

  1. verify whether the situation has been covered in the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) section on Lietuvos bankas' website. You will then be able to quickly assess the compliance of the financial market participant’s actions with the regulatory requirements relevant to your case;
  2. if you cannot find the comment you need in the FAQs or believe that the financial market participant may not have complied with the regulatory requirements after the review of the available information, you can file a complaint with Lietuvos bankas. Before filing your complaint, be sure to read the relevant information below. 

If Lietuvos bankas found violations of regulatory requirements, it would decide whether to conduct a separate investigation or to impose sanctions on the financial market participant.

Get general information

During the first half of 2026, Lietuvos bankas received 1188 inquiries and complaints

 

Last date of data update: 03-08-2026
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Last update: 12-05-2025