The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said concerns raised by the industry about the speed of implementation of its incoming Consumer Duty have been “well heard”.
While the regulator acknowledged many communications from the financial services sector had been received on the subject, it did not say if it was going to extend the current nine-month timescale.
Speaking at the ABI Achieving good outcomes under the Consumer Duty webinar, FCA director of insurance Matt Brewis said following the consultation earlier this year he could not comment further, but the final rules will be published in July.
“To the point around the timing of implementation and the need to give firms the time needed to make the changes and to do it right, as opposed to rushing, has been well heard and has been made by many of you,” Brewis said.
‘Not set up to fail’
In its Regulatory Initiatives Grid published yesterday, the FCA maintained its original schedule of planning to require implementation of the Consumer Duty by firms by April 2023.
Introducing the webinar, ABI director of regulation Charlotte Clark emphasised the concerns about the short time period.
“I have an awful lot of sympathy for my colleagues at the FCA and the amount of work they are having to do around the implementation due to the kind of pressures from Parliament and the deadlines they were given by Parliament,” she said.
“This is an awfully big change to bring in in the timescales that we are talking about.
“So one of the things that we have been very much pushing for is that firms have the right amount of time to implement the rules.”
This was also echoed later on during the webinar.
UK Finance director of strategic policy Matthew Conway said his biggest desire was for firms to be given enough time to implement the Consumer Duty “so they are not set up to fail”.
RSA senior horizon scanning manager Caroline Allison added that she would like to see a longer implementation period, particularly around the product review period.
In February intermediary trade body the Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association (PIMFA) said that advisers need two years to implement the Consumer Duty.