The Credit Ombudsman Service needs a better balance between consumer and member interests, it needs to be more systematic in its approach to handling complaints, and it needs to hire staff with a wider range of skills and greater industry experience.These are among the findings of an independent review of the external dispute resolution service published this week. The review, which was conducted by management consultant The Navigator Company, found that COSL meets most of the industry's benchmarks as well as the requirements of ASIC's regulatory guide for external dispute resolution schemes, RG 139.It found that COSL had developed into a much stronger and more professionally supported scheme since its last review, in 2006.It said one of the highlights was that "COSL has been an innovator and policy leader in the area of consumers confronting financial hardship and has developed its own very successful approach to dealing with financial hardship complaints."However, it made 47 recommendations for changes to communication, complaints handling procedures, staffing, procedural guidance and timeliness.The review found "a few practices that are less consumer-friendly than we see in other schemes and less than we think should be the balance for an EDR [external dispute resolution] scheme."It found there was a tendency to view the organisation's role somewhat narrowly as "resolving disputes", rather than there being an orientation to the broader role that EDR schemes play in the consumer protection framework.COSL's ombudsman and chief executive, Raj Venga, said: "I am not sure that consumer protection and the public interest is our role. That is the role of the regulator. Our job is to settle disputes."The review said there was an emphasis on the resolution of complaints by the most expedient and reasonable means, with some lesser emphasis on what is in the public interest and on fully protecting consumer's rights.The review said: "COSL has done some fine work for consumer rights. However, in some of its choices it has opted for a neutrality that is a little more sensitive to the concerns of the membership and a little less sensitive to the position of the consumer."Care needs to be taken to ensure that complaints are not too narrowly construed and not prematurely closed, that care is taken to ensure that a settlement offer is fair and there is a willingness to properly investigate complaints where negotiation is not producing results."Venga said: "I stand by our policy of looking for early resolution. There is no proof that investigation gives you a better outcome than settlement. "Investigation can take a long time and consumers get very frustrated if these things drag on.'The review recommended that COSL formulate a consumer awareness strategy based on research and analysis, with the focus on groups that are under-represented by COSL complaints.It recommended that COSL collect data from complainants as to whether they were told about COSL by the member company. It should take remedial action with any members that are failing to provide this information.It also recommended that COSL develop procedural guidance for staff that