Four key elements of Consumer Duty:
Products and services — The FCA wants all products and services to be “designed to meet the needs, characteristics and objectives of a target group of customers and distributed appropriately”.
Price and value — Firms should “ensure there is a reasonable relationship between the price paid for a product or service, and the overall benefit a consumer receives from it.”
Consumer understanding — The consumer should “be given the information they need, at the right time, and presented in a way they can understand.”
Consumer support — Firms should “provide a level of support that meets consumers’ needs throughout their relationship with the firm and consider using a range of channels to reach customers, ranging from in-person consultations to webchats and video calls.”
MorganAsh upgrades MARS system in time for Consumer Duty. The ‘resilience rating’ has been updated in its new adviser tool, with tailored questions around potential coercion as well as additional consumer protected characteristics to help mortgage firms with their diversity reporting.
Scams offering to 'write off debts' targeting UK consumers. The FCA has published a customer warning notice about firms offering unauthorised claims management services to people in the UK. These firms offer to 'write off' debts, mainly mortgages, and get compensation for consumers from their lenders. This might include reclaiming past payments of capital and interest. It says:
The firms often charge a fee to do this and might add more fees even when the scheme fails. This can lead to significant losses for those involved. The firms might try to convince individuals by pointing to ideas such as 'Strawman', 'Freeman of the Land' and 'Sovereign Citizen'. These ideas promote the belief that the government and laws of a country have no powers over people. Fraudsters use these ideas to appeal to people facing financial difficulties, who may be looking for a way out of their debt. Individuals should be cautious of any such firms offering to write off debt. These scams often increase in times of economic hardship and can involve vulnerable victims who are already struggling with money.
Nearly fifth of regulated firms don’t check new customers against sanctions or Politically Exposed Person (PEP) lists. despite the number of sanctions doubling since February, with 7,200 individuals and 1,250 entities added to the sanctions lists. — SmartSearch research.
