Consumer Duty Hub
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) introduced Consumer Duty on Monday 31 July to set higher and clearer standards of customer protection across the financial services industry.
The new duty applies to all regulated activities and is underpinned by a Consumer Principle which requires firms to act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers by following three cross-cutting rules and four outcomes.
Consumer principle
A firm must act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers.
Cross-cutting rules
Firms must
- act in good faith
- avoid foreseeable harm to retail customers
- enable and support retail customers to pursue their financial objectives
Four outcomes
Products and services - firm should ensure that all products are fit for purpose and are designed to meet the needs, characteristics and objectives of customers
Price and value - firm should ensure that the price customers pay for a product or service provides value for money and is reasonable compared to the overall benefits
Consumer understanding - firms should ensure their communications mean customers can understand their products and services, their features and risks, and the implications of any decisions they make
Customer support - firms should ensure they provide support that meets their cusomers' needs to enable them to realise the benefits of the products and services they buy, pursue their financial objectives and ensure they can act in their own interests
Fair Value Assessment
We’ve conducted thorough assessments on all of our on sale regulated products to ensure they provide fair value to your customers.
To help you select the right product for your customers, we’ll be using an industry standard template that’s been created with UK Finance to ensure clear and consistent information is provided. The template will:
- provide an understanding of the characteristics of our products;
- help you understand the identified target market;
- consider the needs, characteristics and objectives of any customers with characteristics of vulnerability;
- identify the intended distribution strategy
- ensure the product will be distributed in accordance with the target market.
Roles and responsibilities
We’ve added a statement of our roles and responsibilities under Consumer Duty to our Broker Portal Agreement/Broker Terms of Business.
You’ll need to confirm you accept them the first time you log in.
FAQs
View our consumer duty frequently asked questions here.
Further reading
For more information about Consumer Duty vist the FCA website.
Contact us
If you’ve got any questions about our approach, please speak with your Business Development Manager or contact us.