A duty to think again

In addition, there are also signs that many consumers, more than seven in 10, have little clue what the Consumer Duty is all about.

The FCA has been naturally keen to trumpet the positive impact of the Consumer Duty and its benefits for consumers but these latest figures, in a survey by respected market research company Opinium which surveyed both advisers and consumers, suggests there is a long way to go.

Of most concern is the view from many advisers, 61% to be exact, that the Consumer Duty has resulted in less time to advise clients.

Is the Duty, in some ways, doing the opposite of what it set out to achieve?

Some of this will be teething issues and getting used to the additional requirements but the adviser part of this survey was carried out only last month, six months after the Consumer Duty was implemented. So the changes were already well known and understood.

According to the survey, some 72% of advisers said the Duty had increased admin and 45% said it had resulted in “difficulty” in advising clients with 61% reporting less time to advise clients. It is early days but these are not good signs.

The Consumer Duty was brought in to raise standards and improve the way consumers are treated by the financial services sector “at all stages of the consumer journey.” These are laudable aims and no-one would disagree with the sentiment but this is not really progress if clients struggle to get time with their adviser who is too busy completing extra forms and admin to get things done. Ultimately this will damage the advice profession.

The FCA needs to take heed of these warning signs and find out more from advisers how they are implementing the duty and what challenges they are facing. The Consumer Duty is a big shift on previous practice and it will take time to bed in but advisers clearly need more support to balance the requirements with the need to give clients their time and run profitable businesses.

In terms of consumers, it is clear the Consumer Duty is far from understood. With virtually no marketing to promote it there is no surprise this is the case.

The FCA may be waiting until July for the legacy product stage of the Duty to be added but it’s a poor start if this huge and costly initiative is virtually unknown among the people it was designed to help.

Time will help with many of these issues but the FCA needs to grapple with the negative initial feedback and accept that changes are needed to improve the understanding and implementation of the Duty, both for consumers and advisers.

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Kevin O’Donnell is editor of Financial Planning Today and a journalist with 40 years of experience in finance, business and mainstream news. This topical comment on the Financial Planning news appears most weeks, usually on Fridays but occasionally other days.  Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Follow @FPT_Kevin