Financial advisers still confused about FSA's adviser charging rules
Financial technology company Avelo has found advisers are still unclear on adviser charging rules ahead of the RDR.
The firm questioned almost 150 advisers on the content of the Financial Services Authority’s consultation paper CP11/25.
This paper was initially released in November and covered the methods of payments advisers could use for adviser and consultancy charges.
However, six months later, advisers are still confused and concerned by the changes.
Some 69 per cent of advisers said they felt not enough had been done by the FSA to clarify adviser charging and only four per cent said they were clear on the procedure.
Three quarters of advisers felt that the FSA had not listened to adviser and client feedback on the matter and 21 per cent felt the FSA had listened to their concerns but missed out key elements in the paper.
Paul Yates, strategy and product development director at Avelo, said: “It is clear from our research that the FSA has not done enough to consider the views and experiences of the most important people in the industry; the advisers and providers who are tasked with changing their whole business model to deliver in a post-RDR world.
“While it is encouraging that the regulator is approaching these issues head on, more has to be done to ensure that policies are transparent and easily understood by the industry as a whole and not just its architects.
“If advisers are not clear, what hope do consumers have of understanding the proposals?”