The FCA has found that financial advisers are delivering suitability reviews in the vast majority of cases included in the evaluation of ongoing advice.
Financial advisers can charge their clients for ongoing advice and related services, such as arranging transactions or managing a relationship between a retail client and discretionary investment manager.
The FCA was concerned that these services may not always have been delivered where they had been offered, so asked for data from 22 of the largest financial advice firms. The review focused on delivery of suitability reviews as firms generally included these as part of their ongoing advice service.
The data provided by the firms showed that suitability reviews were delivered in around 83% of cases. In a further 15% of cases, the FCA were told that clients either declined or did not respond to the firm’s offer of a review. There were fewer than 2% of cases where firms reported they had made no effort to deliver the suitability review to clients.
The rules on ongoing services were introduced more than a decade ago, during which time consumer needs and expectations, technology, and market practices have continued to change. Going forwards, the FCA will review the regulatory approach for these services.
The FCA’s interim executive director of markets Simon Walls commented: ‘Ongoing financial advice and support can be a fantastic service and can be important in helping people make the most of their money. Relationships between advisers and customers can last many years and can take different forms.
He added: ‘In the vast majority of the cases we looked at, firms delivered ongoing advice for their customers. But, in a small number of cases, they haven’t attempted to provide the services they offered and customers are paying for. In those instances, they will need to put that right.”
