OTTAWA, April 12, 2006 - The Financial
Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) today announced the launch on its Web site of
a new searchable database of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), to help Canadian
consumers find the answers to commonly asked questions about financial products
and services.
"If a consumer has a question about financial services or banking, it may
well be that someone else has asked the same question before," said FCAC
Commissioner Bill Knight. "Our new
on-line tool can help Canadian consumers find the information they are looking
for when it comes to financial services and products, and also find out about
their
rights and responsibilities when dealing with federally regulated financial
institutions."
The questions and answers in the database are based on thousands of questions,
comments and complaints from consumers that FCAC responds to every year through
its Consumer Contact Centre. The new FAQ database encompasses a wide variety of
financial topics - from bank accounts to credits cards, to insurance,
investments,
personal loans and mortgages.
"Our new searchable database gives consumers a way to get access to useful
and objective information that can help them make informed decisions regarding
financial products and services," adds Knight.
Consumers will be able to search FCAC's FAQ database by keyword, by
category
or by sub-category, as well as view all of the questions and answers in the
database,
if they wish to do so. Consumers can also look at the top five "Most
viewed" or "Latest
added" questions. In addition, the Agency's database provides a list
of related questions, and links to other helpful resources that consumers may want
to consult.
FCAC will update its database on a regular basis. The Agency invites consumers
to submit any questions that are not listed and which could be included in future
upgrades.
To consult FCAC's FAQ database, visit the Agency's Web site at:
www.fcac.gc.ca and
go to the "For Consumers" section. The Agency also publishes a variety
of useful publications that consumers can download from its Web site and that are
also available to the public, free of charge, by calling FCAC's
Consumer
Contact Centre, toll-free, at: 1-866-461-3222.
FCAC ensures compliance with the consumer protection laws, codes of conduct and
public commitments that apply to banks and federally incorporated trust, loan and
insurance companies. FCAC also provides consumers with accurate
and objective information about financial products and services, and informs
Canadians of
their rights and responsibilities when dealing with federally regulated
financial
institutions.
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Media contacts:
John Kane
Communications Officer
(613) 941-8988
kane.john@fcac.gc.ca
Martine Bélanger
Media Relations Officer
(613) 941-8982
belanger.martine@fcac.gc.ca
