Round Up Spring 2019

regulatory matters

The FCA has published the findings of its review on the disclosure of ex-ante costs by retail intermediaries. It undertook this review to: • Assess firms’ level of compliance with the rules. • Identify firms that are failing to comply. • Understand how well firms are sharing cost and charges information with each other to enable them to meet their obligations to provide aggregated figures to clients. • Understand what effect the new rules are having in improving the transparency of firms’ communications with clients. FCA findings Overall the FCA’s review suggests that the industry has been slow to comply with the relevant rules. It’s key points were: • All firms reviewed were aware of their costs and charges disclosure obligations. However, the FCA has concerns with the way that some firms were carrying out these responsibilities. • Firms were not interpreting the relevant rules consistently. However, the FCA highlighted that most of them had given this serious consideration and were trying to comply with them. • Firms who were not complying with the relevant rules cited the problems they faced in obtaining all the required data from third-parties to do so. • Firms are reluctant to upgrade their technology to support information disclosure to clients as they weren’t confident about the accuracy and delivery of this data. • Firms are looking to comply with the new requirements, but there was reasonable evidence to support that their efforts are being hampered by the required data not being available. The regulator is expecting all firms to review their own costs and charges disclosures in light of the review findings to make sure they are satisfying all relevant requirements. FCA publishes its findings on costs and charges disclosure

The FCA has confirmed new rules and guidance requiring firms to write to certain PPI complainants whose complaints have previously been rejected. The FCA has already set a deadline of 29 August 2019 for consumers to complain about the sale of payment protection insurance (PPI) policies. Within PS19/2, the FCA confirms new rules that require firms, who have previously rejected certain PPI complaints, to write to affected complainants informing them that they can make a new complaint about undisclosed commission. Thy must remind them that the deadline for doing so is 29 August 2019. These letters need to be sent no later than 29 April 2019. They must: • Explain that the recipient can make a further complaint, if they want, about non-disclosure of commission (at point of sale or later). • Refer to the deadline of 29 August 2019 for making PPI complaints and to the identity of the lender (where this is known to the seller). • Provide information about the firm’s complaint handling arrangements (where it’s the lender). • Refer to the information about making a further complaint that’s available on the FCA’s PPI website or through the FCA’s PPI contact centre. If you’ve received, and rejected, any PPI complaints in the past, you will need to consider whether you now need to send the complainant a further letter by 29 April 2019. Rejected PPI complaints - further contact needs to be made

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