Professional standards in the finance broking industry are improving, according to the industry's peak body, the Mortgage and Finance Association of Australia. The association's disciplinary tribunal handled 20 new matters last year, down from 30 in 2012, and expelled or suspended six members, which was down from 11 in 2012.MFAA chief executive Phil Naylor said that a combination of factors had helped raise standards. These include stronger enforcement by the regulator, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, and a stronger MFAA governance regime.Last year, the association culled its membership list after 1100 brokers failed to meet new qualification requirements (400 were re-admitted after they got their diplomas)."We are delighted that the number of complaints against our 10,000 accredited advisers is dropping." Naylor said.However, the work of the MFAA's disciplinary tribunal is only part of the story. In its 2013 annual report, the Credit Ombudsman Service reported that complaints involving finance brokers rose nine per cent, to 337, during the year to June.COSL said that common complaints about brokers included failure to comply with responsible lending obligations, lack of diligence, over-charging and misrepresentation.Naylor said most of the complaints the MFAA dealt with involved misrepresentation - putting the wrong income figures and other information into loan applications in order to get a loan approved.