LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's Financial Ombudsman Service has appointed Caroline Wayman as its new chief executive and chief ombudsman, replacing Natalie Ceeney who stepped down last November to take up a position at HSBC (>> HSBC Holdings plc).

Wayman is currently the principal ombudsman and legal director and has been with the Financial Ombudsman Service since 2000. She previously worked in the insurance sector.

The ombudsman steps in to settle cases where financial services firms and their customers cannot reach an agreement. It has grown rapidly in response to the number of complaints received about the mis-selling of loan insurance, which has cost banks more than 20 billion pounds in compensation.

(Reporting by Matt Scuffham; Editing by Simon Jessop)