New Zealand's Banking Ombudsman Scheme reported a 16 per cent increase in cases in the 2012/13 financial year, as complaints about smaller banks increased and awareness of the scheme improved.Banking Ombudsman Deborah Battell said the total number of cases received rose to 3,033 in the year to June 30, including 82 per cent from New Zealand's big four banks - NAB's BNZ, CBA's ASB, ANZ and Westpac.Battell said she was surprised the total number of cases hadn't fallen in line with an improvement in wider economic conditions in the wake of the financial crisis and relatively fewer cases of financial stress. "While GFC-related complaints are down, contacts remained high due to public interest in legislative change such as the introduction of anti-money laundering legislation, the bank fees litigation and the ANZ/National bank brand merger," Battell said.There were 74 cases reported because of the late October 2012 merger of ANZ and National's computer systems and operations into a single ANZ system and brand. ANZ reported it resolved all the complaints satisfactorily through its internal complaints process. "While the GFC is no longer affecting personal banking customers, it appears small business are still feeling its lag effect," says Banking Ombudsman Deborah Battell. It reported nearly a third of 2012/13 dispute cases were resolved favourably for customers, either partly or in full, with compensation rising to NZ$598,000 from NZ$505,000.A larger proportion of complaints were about smaller banks, with the share of complaints from smaller banks rising to 18.3 per cent from 15.4 per cent the previous year and being above their 11.6 per cent share of bank assets.Battell said some banks were improving their customer service more than others and some newer members' customers were more aware of the scheme, including The Co-operative Bank and Heartland Bank. Enquiries about Kiwibank rose to 182 from 100, although formal complaints fell to 78 from 98.