The financial services industry is highly regulated and companies
selling financial products or advice must adhere to a stringent set of
guidelines set out by the industry’s independent regulatory body, the
Financial Services Authority. The FSA has wide-ranging rule-making,
enforcement and investigatory powers and your rights as a consumer are
well protected.
The aim of the FSA is to ‘promote efficient, orderly and fair markets
and to help retail consumers achieve a fair deal’ (source:
www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/About/What/index.shtml), and it has four principle
objectives: to promote confidence in the industry, to increase public
understanding of the financial system, to protect consumers and to
reduce financial crime.
Companies must be authorised by the FSA in order to sell financial
products and services. This includes banks, building societies,
investment companies, mortgage providers, insurance firms, financial
advisors and pensions sellers. They must comply with the guidelines
set out by the FSA in its Handbook. Broadly speaking, the rules that
financial companies must follow are to:
be trustworthy and financially secure
provide clear information to help you make financial decisions, such
as ‘key facts’ and ‘key features’ of products and services
give professional, competent advice
have clear and straightforward procedures for making a complaint
inform you about compensation methods
You can find out whether a company is authorised by the FSA by using
the Check Service on the FSA’s website.
If you have a complaint about a financial product or service you have
bought, you should contact the company in the first instance. If the
complaint isn’t resolved to you satisfaction here, you should then
contact an independent complaint scheme such as the Financial Ombudsman
Service. The Ombudsman will carry out an impartial investigation into
the complaint and will attempt to resolve it. You don’t have to accept
the Ombudsman’s findings, but if you do they are legally binding on
both you and the company with whom you have a complaint. If you don’t
agree with the findings and want to take the matter further, the next
step is to take your case to court.
Banks and building societies also have their own voluntary code of
conduct for promoting best practice and ensuring that customers are
treated fairly and reasonably. Managed by the Banking Code Standards
Board, it’s known simply as the Banking Code and most major high street
banks have signed up to it. Products and services covered by the Code
include bank accounts, overdrafts, loans, credit cards and foreign
exchanges.
Some of the key rules to which the participating banks and building
societies agree to adhere are:
providing clear information on products and services and how they
work
ensuring that promotional material and advertising are accurate
and not misleading
keeping customers informed by sending regular statements and
telling customers about changes to terms and conditions, charges or
interest rates
acting promptly and fairly to deal with complaints when things go
wrong
using safe and secure systems and keeping personal information
confidential
promoting the Banking Code and ensuring that employees understand
and abide by it
The Banking Code Standards Board isn’t able to investigate
individual complaints on behalf of consumers, but its helpdesk can
provide useful information and support. If you have a grievance that
you’ve been unable to sort out with the company concerned, you should
take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
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About Benedict Rohan:
Biography:
Author: Benedict Rohan
Website:
www.mortgagenation.co.uk
Benedict Rohan works as a freelance finance writer. Commercial Mortgage, Homeowner Loans, Remortgages
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