Consumer awareness of Alternative Dispute Resolution services

Introduction

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a critical part of consumer protection, giving consumers access to redress when something goes wrong with a product or service – without the need for complex and costly legal action. However, the efficacy of ADR schemes depends crucially on consumer awareness that a service exists and understanding of how it can help.

The evidence on awareness paints a mixed picture. Research by Citizens’ Advice indicates that awareness of ADR is low among consumers, though it was a little higher in regulated compared to unregulated sectors. Our own research, looking specifically at financial services, shows that most consumers have heard of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), even though only a small minority have used it. The FOS is a very large and well-established organisation, so it is logical that it would enjoy higher levels of awareness.

Research also indicates that awareness is a barrier to the successful use of ADR. As set out in Which?’s report on strengthening ADR frameworks, many consumers are not aware of relevant schemes until disputes have already escalated, which removes the opportunity for early resolution. Our research into complaints in the veterinary market demonstrated this issue too, with some pet owners saying that they hadn't heard about the mediation service on offer until late in the process, when the complaint had already escalated. 

In order to gain a better understanding of general ADR awareness among consumers in 2026, Yonder, on behalf of Which?, conducted a short online poll on the issue with a nationally representative sample of 2,099 consumers between 19-21 June 2026. This article sets out the results from this research, looking at consumers’ spontaneous and prompted awareness of ADR mechanisms, and what they know about how such mechanisms work. 

‘Ombudsman’ is the term consumers most commonly associate with complaint resolution

Consumers were asked if they were aware of processes or services that could help them to resolve complaints, without going to court, if they were unable to resolve it directly with the business. We asked those who had heard of such processes and services (61%) to tell us which they had heard of. This aimed to capture spontaneous awareness of redress processes without prompting consumers with a list, as this might overestimate true awareness. A third (34%) could not think of any examples, but among those who could, ‘ombudsman’ was the most common example provided, with nearly a fifth of consumers spontaneously mentioning the term. 

Citizens’ Advice was the next most commonly mentioned. While not actually an ADR scheme, it is clearly top-of-mind for many consumers when thinking about complaint resolution. Trading Standards and various regulators such as Ofcom and Ofgem were also fairly commonly mentioned. Crucially, ombudsman was the only true ADR mechanism frequently mentioned - other ADR mechanisms like mediation, arbitration and the term ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution’ itself were rarely cited as examples. 

Figure 1: Ombudsman is the complaints mechanism most commonly mentioned by consumers

Awareness was higher when consumers were prompted with a list, though often they don’t know anything about what these processes involve

After the spontaneous recall exercise, we showed consumers a list of ADR-related terms and asked them about their familiarity level with them, to assess their self-reported knowledge once prompted. Again, the term ombudsman came out as most recognisable, though the difference compared with mediation in particular was much smaller in this prompted knowledge question. Nine in ten consumers said they had heard of the term ombudsman in relation to complaint resolution, compared to 85% for mediation. Even terms like adjudication had fairly high self-reported awareness (64%) despite nobody having mentioned it in the spontaneous recall question. “ombudsman” was the only term for which more than half said they had both heard of it and knew something about what it involves.

Figure 2: Self-reported awareness and knowledge of ADR related terms

Many consumers are able to say something about what services like an ombudsman involve

The 59% of consumers who said they had heard of an ombudsman and know something about what it involves were then asked to share their understanding of what the process involves. Whilst many simply identified that it is a complaints resolution service, more than a fifth (22%) specifically identified that it involves an ‘independent’, ‘impartial’, or ‘neutral’ third party. There were also references to other key features of an ombudsman, like investigating complaints (10%), coming to a decision or ruling (12%), being a consumer help / advocate (14%) and fairness in their approach (6%).  Below are some verbatim responses from consumers about what an ombudsman is, indicating a relatively good level of understanding among many who said they know what it involves.

“It is a completely independent, free-to-use referee that settles disputes between consumers and businesses after a dead lock.” - Male, 23, London

“An official organisation that listens to both sides of an argument and makes a judgement.” - Female, 82, North West

“A complaint can be made to an ombudsman who will investigate the matter & they decide if any redress needs to be made & at what level.” - Male, 62, South East

“A service you can complain to about disputes (eg financial) and they consider both sides and make a decision.” - Female, 36, Scotland

Although fewer consumers knew something about mediation, those who did again identified themes like dispute resolution and independence, and many picked up on defining features of mediation like facilitating discussion (25%), negotiation (7%) and the bringing together of two disagreeing parties (8%). 

“A service that offers neutral support to allow two parties who disagree to engage in discussion” - Male, 76, Northern Ireland

“A neutral third party helps two or more parties come to a resolution on a dispute” - Male, 37, North West

Although primed to consider complaints resolution, some participants referred to the general definition of the word mediation, or mentioned other types of mediation like that involved in divorce proceedings.

Conclusion

Although the term ‘Alternative Dispute Resolution’ itself, and some mechanisms like adjudication, had little meaning to consumers, the concept of an ombudsman was widely recognised. Most consumers said they know something about an ombudsman, and a significant minority of consumers were able to identify aspects of one beyond simply being involved in complaints resolution, such as independence and neutrality, and taking an investigatorial approach. 

Which? has called for a single ombudsman for key sectors, providing a single, trusted place for consumers to turn for help. This research further demonstrates the potential power of a recognised concept like an ombudsman in a dispute resolution landscape that can be complex, confusing and challenging for consumers to navigate.