A commitment to having the telephone answered “by a human being rather than an answering machine” is one of the many attributes of a new consumer service launched in Melbourne on Friday by Federal Treasurer Peter Costello.

Praising the consumer-friendly approach of the new Banking, Insurance & Investment Assistance facility, Mr Costello said it is pleasing to see three major alternative dispute resolution systems working together. The facility links the back offices of the Australian Banking Industry Ombudsman, Insurance Enquiries & Complaints and the Financial Industry Complaints Service.

The three services have combined their answering and reception facilities to provide a more efficient response to the more than 350,000 consumer calls they jointly handle each year. Pictured with Mr Costello as he cut a cake at the launch are, from left, Banking Ombudsman Colin Neave, FICS CEO Alison Maynard and IEC CEO Sam Parrino.