The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) is aware that the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) experienced system outages in June and July 2021. The purpose of this information is to provide early communication for consumers who may have been impacted.

What has happened?

CBA experienced system outages in June and July 2021 which meant that customers were unable to access their money when they needed to.

Have you been affected?

AFCA encourages consumers impacted by these outages to contact CBA and discuss options to resolve any outstanding concerns. You can contact them by emailing customerrelations@cba.com.au

We understand that system outages are frustrating and can cause inconvenience, however, AFCA can only consider complaints about system outages if a consumer has experienced loss and the complaint otherwise falls within our Rules

Some financial firms may decide to resolve a complaint by making an offer where no loss has occurred, however, this is a matter for them.

If you encounter difficulties which you are unable to resolve directly with CBA, AFCA may be able to consider your complaint.

You can register your complaint with AFCA by using our online complaint form or by calling 1800 931 678.

The process we will follow  

When you complain to us, we follow a complaint resolution process that provides fair outcomes.

If you lodge a complaint, AFCA will first refer the matter back to CBA so that it has an opportunity to resolve the complaint directly with you.

If the complaint remains unresolved and progresses to case management, AFCA will look into whether the system outages led you to suffer any loss.

We will ask you to provide information and documentation as evidence of the loss.

Every complaint is unique in nature and will be decided based on what happened.

You can find out more about the process we follow at afca.org.au/process

AFCA’s role

AFCA is a non-government ombudsman service providing free, fair and independent help with financial disputes.

We will generally try to first resolve a complaint by informal methods to reach a settlement between you and the financial firm through negotiation or conciliation. If this does not work, we may then use more formal methods.