The Financial Services Ombudsman has said the financial services industry has not adjusted its practices to confront the challenges of the financial crisis.
Bill Prasifka said the number of mortgage-related complaints against banks increased by 50% in the first half of this year.
€1.3m in compensation was awarded to people who had their complaints against financial institutions upheld in the first half of this year.
The number of banking complaints increased by 14%, with a 50% increase in mortgage-related complaints and a 50% increase in complaints linked to mortgage protection. Complaints about medical health providers were up by 59%.
The Financial Services Ombudsman has said the trends show an increase in the number of complaints being made by consumers and an increase in the percentage of complaints being upheld.
He said he had been struck by the very different records of some regulated institutions, with relatively few complaints made against them upheld, while others had complaints made against them upheld by a percentage far in excess of their industry peers.
Mr Prasifka called the record of financial institutions "disappointing".
"It indicates to me that the industry has not adjusted its practices to the challenges it must confront in dealing with the consequences of the financial crisis," he said.
"It is not in the consumers' or financial institutions' interests for these trends to continue. "Financial institutions must do more to engage with consumers and resolve complaints sooner,'' he cautioned.
"In addition, financial institutions can do more to inform consumers of the consequences of their financial decisions and this should in turn reduce the number of complaints."
The number of findings by the FSO increased by 38%.
The number of complaints upheld, or partly upheld increased in the insurance (from 19% to 24%), banking (from 26% to 33%) and investment (from 26% to 34%) sectors.
Mr Prasifka identified disparity in the records of the various financial institutions, and said that this underlined the need to publish information about individual institutions.
"Some institutions have relatively few of the complaints made against them upheld," he said. "Other institutions have complaints made against them upheld by a percentage far in excess of their industry peers''.
"The FSO's Review further underlines the need and justification for publishing information about the complaints record of individual Financial Institutions," he said.
