149 Results found.

FCA fines highlight the need for better customer support

Insight — 24/10/24
Two recent huge fines imposed by the FCA have once again spotlighted the ongoing need for improvement across all forms of financial service lending. It highlights that firms need to ensure that customers are receiving effective support and good outcomes in periods when they experience financial diff

Five key questions to consider when changing your advice model

Insight — 22/08/24
Recently there has been an uptick in investment advice firms looking to make some material changes to their propositions, TCC’s regulatory experts report.   For example, some advisers are looking to introduce in-house investment platforms or to manage portfolios on a discretionary basis, to i

Discretionary commission arrangements review – do I need to act?

Insight — 22/08/24
“Firms who expect the Barclays hearing to result in this issue going away may be disappointed and left trying to catch up on a number of critical risks.” Gary Maude, Director of Advisory Practice, TCC Group Background It's been widely reported that the FCA is conducting a review into whether mot

Five key priorities for long-term Consumer Duty success

Insight — 09/08/24
TCC recently hosted a multi-sector Consumer Duty forum to review ongoing industry risks and challenges whilst providing the opportunity to benchmark progress against financial service peers. In this post-forum evaluation, we consider the five key themes from the day and examine them in greater detai

When ‘safe harbours’ become unsafe

Insight — 07/08/24
As the dust settles on the Consumer Duty landscape one year after it was first introduced, TCC has been keen to gauge industry feedback on how the Duty has been embedded thus far. With this in mind, we’ve hosted two Consumer Duty forums over the past six months – totalling attendance from approx

Case study: Defined benefit transfers

Insight — 24/06/24
"TCC delivered high-quality work, identified issues and challenged assumptions to ensure the best possible outcome for our business. This work has significantly benefited us, and we are very grateful for TCC's support in this and our ongoing activities." Chief Risk Officer

Eight essentials for looming Consumer Duty assessments

Insight — 13/06/24
The 31 July was a date firmly etched on minds across the industry this time last year, as the Consumer Duty became the new compliance standard for all regulated firms. This year, the date remains circled in business diaries as the day boards are required to have conducted their annual assessments. I

A reflection: Identifying potentially vulnerable customers then and now

Insight — 11/06/24
The FCA issued Occasional Paper No.8: Consumer Vulnerability in 2015. It was published with the headline "FCA challenges firms to review approach to consumer vulnerability" and a "test of conscience" issued by the then CEO.     Here, TCC’s Technical Director Judith Wright reflects nine y

How to deliver fair treatment to customers who are (or may become) vulnerable

Insight — 06/06/24
The FCA has recently imposed a fine of over £6.2 million on HSBC (including HSBC UK Bank plc, HSBC Bank plc, and Marks and Spencers Financial services plc) for their ‘inadequate measures’ to treat customers fairly who are experiencing financial difficulties or falling into arrears.   The r

Consumer Duty: What does the FCA expect from ongoing advice services?

Insight — 04/04/24
The regulator has written to 20 major financial advice firms to request information on their ongoing advice charges, signalling its intention to place a spotlight on the ways firms are revising their approach in line with the Consumer Duty’s fair value and consumer understanding requirements. In M