Embedding the Consumer Duty
The FCA introduced the Consumer Duty in July 2023, placing a responsibility on firms to deliver good customer outcomes and to develop the evidence that they are doing so.
The FCA introduced the Consumer Duty in July 2023, placing a responsibility on firms to deliver good customer outcomes and to develop the evidence that they are doing so.
Banks, lenders, and insurers have asked Fairer Finance to assess how well they have been embedding the Consumer Duty. We assess firms against the regulator’s expectations and industry best practice.
Moreover, we aim to help firms prove they deliver good outcomes - not just to the regulator but also to customers and other external stakeholders.
drawing on our framework, we assess whether firms are providing good consumer outcomes. We consider all the available evidence, including a combination of our own data, data provided by the company, and interviews with key stakeholders. We provide a clear picture of how a company is performing in terms of the Consumer Duty’s four key outcomes.
We highlight emerging risks which could lead to poor outcomes for customers. The final output includes our grading of your firm on a 5-point scale, along with clear actions required to meet best practice. Firms that receive top ratings will have the option to use the accreditation in their marketing.
We approached Fairer Finance because we wanted credible, independent validation of how we were performing against the Consumer Duty. It's put us in good shape and provided real reassurance.
The FCA expects boards to produce an annual report assessing compliance with the Consumer Duty. We advise on the nature of these reports, and what evidence is required to robustly evidence compliance. Our independent review is sought after to provide external review and critical reassurance of compliance with the Duty, to support boards’ annual assessment.
We would highly recommend partnering with Fairer Finance for the ongoing implementation of the Consumer Duty.
Providers typically find that developing the evidence base for fair value and consumer understanding require the most thought. Firms are seeking our support on these questions. We have more information on those topics:
If you'd like to discuss how we can help with delivering your Consumer Duty obligations, drop us a line.