Refundee Ltd’s Post

FCA Consumer Duty webinar - One year on - 31/7/2024 #costoflivingcrisis #bifd #productsalesdata #complainthandling The Financial Conduct Authority June 2024 regulatory roundup is out and they have scheduled a #consumerduty webinar for 31 July 2024. The webinar will focus on the impact the Duty has had in its first year, including examples of good practice and areas for improvement. They will look at priorities for the year ahead. Sheldon Mills and Graeme Reynolds of the FCA will be joined by Abby Thomas, Chief Executive and Chief Ombudsman, of the Financial Ombudsman Service. It will be interesting to hear what the Ombudsman has to say with the impact of various FCA interventions likely to stimulate more complaints in different regulated sectors. They have been encouraging feedback on proposals to charge Claims Management Companies and other professional representatives up to £250 to lodge a case, reduced to £75 if the case outcome is in favour of the consumer. This closes on the same day as the general election, the 4 July 2024. This may stimulate questions for the webinar. https://lnkd.in/ejy8rCMJ We will know the outcome of the general election at this point. Borrowers in financial difficulty rules (PS24/2 - BiFD) need to be implemented by November 2024 and the FCA has now written to impacted firms around the Product Sales Data (PS23/3) timetable in 2025.     Chris Warburton Melanie Giles Barry Hind FCA webinar link below: https://lnkd.in/e-FQPYcG

It's interesting to see the Financial Ombudsman Service's half-year complaint figures (H2 2023). The FOS warned in early March that there would be a spike in credit card affordability complaints driven by claims management companies, and that seems to have played out in these numbers. From the March update, we know that almost three-quarters of these have come from claims management companies. Shockingly, those CMCs were winning just 14%. Those in consumer credit know that even more shocking is that the 86% of firms winning their cases still have to pay a £650-£750 fee when they win. More than ever, we need reform of the system. We hope that the FOS will listen to all those asking for change. https://lnkd.in/eaFXbe3p

📈 The Financial Ombudsman Service projects a 15% increase in complaints for 2024/25, totaling 210,000 cases. This surge is linked to ongoing financial strains, unaffordable lending, fraud, and scams, with notable impacts expected in motor finance and insurance complaints. 📊 FOS sets ambitious goals to enhance case resolution rates by 17% and shorten resolution times to six months. Moreover, plans are underway to reduce case fees and levy costs, targeting significant savings of around £60 million for businesses. Stay informed by accessing the full report here: https://lnkd.in/efjEgHEW

From April 2024, the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) can award up to £430,000. With a growing number of speculative complaints from complaint management companies, the livelihoods of hardworking IFAs and wealth managers are becoming increasingly precarious. Every day, the FOS are making potentially life-changing judgments that could affect you. Whatever the timescale, if you’ve received a complaint, your best course of action is to investigate it fairly and, if appropriate, mount a robust defence. We have a guide on this, I have added it to the comments. As an expert in managing compliance and regulatory matters at the very highest of levels, I understand how to effectively manage and resolve complaints. If you’re dealing with a complex complaint, drop me a DM to see how I can help 💬

We're all guilty of a little innocent exaggeration but with claims exaggeration it’s not so harmless. If a policyholder makes a claim knowing that they’re entitled to less, but is hoping to get a higher payout, this can make them guilty of fraud. This is claims exaggeration. The policyholder who has exaggerated can be denied the claim entitlement from their insurer, AND may need to pay costs. Help us to spot the signs of claims exaggeration so that we can protect the honest customers who need to make a claim: https://ow.ly/G1jy50R8gc7

Broker (and the Insured) Beware- this decision was completely unnecessary and avoidable. Every Policy specifies when and HOW to report a claim- giving explicit Addresses/Fax numbers and/or email addresses to use to report a new claim together with other information that may be required. Take these seriously, as a new Claim notice sent with a renewal Applicaiton to an underwriter may not be forwarded nor processed. This policyholder, Heritage Bank, is certainly an organization large enough to do better. Completely avoidable- and this is not the only one. There are many other similar denials all involving corporate Insureds.

Interesting news out from the Ombudsman yesterday. The proposals from their consultation on charging 'professional' representatives to use the service have been issued. It is a step in the right direction but in my view does not go far enough. For years, these firms have abused the system with scattergun complaints sent using template letters with no regard to truth or accuracy and automatic FOS referral for rejected complaints regardless of the merits. There needs to be a proper and effective deterrent to their behaviour. The system ought to require the representative to conduct a full and honest review of the response and advise the client in writing as to whether they feel FOS referral is justified. If they elect for FOS referral and the case is found against them then the representative ought to pay the full case fee. Not just £250 of it. They also ought to be precluded from charging it back to the customer. Then we might finally see them clean up their act. https://lnkd.in/efYThSiT

Ending the week with this 5⭐ review from Andrew Dawkins. We know that every case is different, but the level of service your receive remains consistent. That's because we assign a dedicated manual underwriter to every case who works with you to help get a positive outcome. For us, it’s not just service. It’s Service: Supercharged ⚡ #KensingtonDifference #ServiceSupercharged #TrustpilotReview | Intermediaries only

From April 2024, the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) can award up to £430,000. With a growing number of speculative complaints from complaint management companies, the livelihoods of hardworking IFAs and wealth managers are becoming increasingly precarious. Every day, the FOS are making potentially life-changing judgments that could affect you. Whatever the timescale, if you’ve received a complaint, your best course of action is to investigate it fairly and, if appropriate, mount a robust defence. We have a guide on this, I have added it to the comments. As an expert in managing compliance and regulatory matters at the very highest of levels, I understand how to effectively manage and resolve complaints. If you’re dealing with a complex complaint, drop me a DM to see how I can help 💬

In this article, Geoffrey Fehling and Carleton Goss review a recent federal court decision involving insurance coverage for claims stemming from the collapse of First NBC Bank. Read "Bank Failure Highlights Related Claim Issues, State Law Considerations, in Directors and Officers Insurance Claims." https://ow.ly/ZGUI50QQ57K #legalnews #bankruptcylaw