The head of operations at the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has left amid concerns of high staff turnover at the organisation, which is now seeking a replacement for the £140,000 a year role.

Simon Rouse joined the FOS last August following the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) scandal to ensure the service handled its increased caseload “effectively from start to finish”, and to lead its strategy to “deliver the highest level of customer service”.

There is speculation Rouse has headed back to Barclays, where he was previously head of strategy and performance management for business banking, and national performance director for theUKbranch network.

The FOS has published a job advert for his replacement, which promises a salary of “up to £140k”.

It goes on to say: “Some problems can’t just be solved using logical thinking. It also takes creativity – the ability to break out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.”

Rouse’s departure comes amid concern among the FOS board about high staff turnover.

Minutes from a meeting in July show the board asked if the service knew the cause of the increased turnover rate. The HR director told the board that staff reasons for leaving included better opportunities and salaries elsewhere.

She also said the higher turnover levels should be seen against the fact that “the quality of the most recent intakes was particularly high and that new staff went through intensive induction and training on starting”.

The financial ombudsman this month defended its hiring and training process after a 25-year-old law graduate with no financial services experience was found to have become an adjudicator after just a month’s training. In a statement, an FOS spokesperson said the service was “disappointed to lose” Rouse but not surprised as it reflected the calibre of FOS staff.

Head of operations, Garry Wilkinson, and chief technology officer, Mark Gee, will oversee the operational functions of the organisation until a new operations director is appointed.

Sally Bowyer, Managing Director of leading financial claims firm Brunel Franklin, said that consumers could recoup many years’ worth of premiums plus interest. “If you were mis-sold PPI, you may be entitled to several years’ premiums plus 8% interest, which can in some cases amount to several thousands of pounds.”

Learn more about PPI refunds and find out if you could apply for a refund today! Visit the website www.brunelfranklin.com or call Brunel Franklin, free, on 0800 051 54 51.