Senior Complaints Manager

Head of Complaints

Zopa Bank, a pioneering peer-to-peer lending company that evolved into a leading digital bank, is redefining the finance industry by putting people first. We are proud of our achievements, including being named one of the UK's Most Loved Workplaces.

We are seeking a Head of Complaints to lead our comprehensive complaints function, which spans current accounts, consumer lending, auto finance, FOS escalations, and an expanding AI-assisted case-handling program. This role requires leadership, sound judgment on complex cases, and the ability to translate complaints data into actionable business improvements.

Reporting to the Head of Complaints, you will lead a complaints management team, own the process, and make informed, balanced, and complex decisions. You will set the standard for handling high-risk cases, including those escalated to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), and ensure that learnings from complaints drive improvements in how Zopa is built and operated.

This is a senior role with significant influence, involving collaboration with Product, Risk, Credit, Legal, and Operations teams, and representation in senior forums.

A Day in the Life:

Team and Operational Leadership

• Lead, develop, and performance manage a team of complaint handlers and managers, setting clear expectations on quality, conduct, and performance.
• Foster a culture of accountability, sound judgment, and high-quality decision-making.
• Own the end-to-end complaints process, including escalated and complex cases.
• Define and maintain handling procedures, quality frameworks, and controls across the function.
• Support and guide the team on difficult cases, ensuring consistency and good customer outcomes.

Escalated, Complex, and FOS Complaints

• Help set the approach for handling escalated regulatory and FOS complaints end-to-end, including DSARs.
• Make decisions on cases that are high impact, sensitive, or genuinely ambiguous.
• Stay informed on FOS decisions and trends, and adjust our approach as needed.
• Ensure our outcomes are fair, consistent, and defensible internally and to regulators.
• Own our alignment with FCA DISP, Consumer Duty, and conduct standards.

Supporting Complaints-Driven Change

• Utilize complaints data to identify areas where customers face issues.
• Prioritize based on customer impact and risk, not just volume.
• Work closely with Product, Risk, Credit, Legal, and Operations to support root cause fixes.
• Partner with relevant teams to ensure actions are implemented and repeat issues are prevented.

Insight and Risk

• Own the reporting of complaints outcomes, FOS results, and key risks to senior leadership.
• Transform data into clear, actionable insights, not just dashboards.
• Identify and communicate risks early, ensuring they are addressed before becoming problems.
• Maintain strong controls and ensure readiness for audit or regulatory review at any time.

Cross-Business Influence

• Build trusted relationships across Zopa, including at the senior level.
• Drive decisions and change in areas you do not directly manage.
• Represent Complaints in forums where product, policy, and risk decisions are made.
• Balance what is right for customers with business and risk priorities, knowing when to push back.

About You:

• Complaints experience in retail banking or fintech.
• Deep knowledge of FOS, FCA DISP, and consumer credit regulation.
• Experience working directly with the FOS or FCA.
• Hands-on experience with current accounts or consumer lending products.
• Experience leading and developing teams in a complaints and conduct environment.
• Track record of using complaints insight to drive real product or process change.
• Confidence in making difficult decisions with genuine regulatory and customer consequences.
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead change without direct authority.
• Background in conduct risk, remediation, or complaints policy.
• Exposure to AI-assisted complaint handling or automation.

#LI-LH1

At Zopa, we value flexible ways of working. This hybrid role requires you to be in our London office 2-3 days a week. You'll also have the option of working from abroad for up to 120 days a year*. We ensure you have everything you need to thrive, both in your work and home life, from day one.

*Subject to having the right to work in the country of choice.

Diversity Statement

Zopa is proud to offer a workplace free from discrimination. Diversity of experience, perspectives, and backgrounds leads to better products for our customers and a unique company culture. We are made up of nearly 50 nationalities, have a DE&I forum, and foster a culture where everyone can bring their full selves to work. Our approach to DE&I is reflected in our hiring process, so please let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments.