The financial services regulator has said, as part of its implementation of ‘Treating Customers Fairly’ (TCF), that it planned to increase the number of visits to small firms, with 3,000 planned for 2008 and 4,000 a year from 2009.
However, with many small firms expected to receive a visit for the first time in the coming months, Richard Fox, chief executive of the Society of Mortgage Professionals, believed the industry needed to focus on ensuring these mortgage intermediaries were ready to deal with it.
He said: “The FSA has made this announcement about TCF visits but how ready are intermediaries for this and how much do they understand about what’s involved? It’s difficult to find a way of helping them to prepare for a visit and we’ve had some conversations with the FSA about what needs to be done.”
Richard Farr, director at the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries, insisted that advisers were always willing to engage with the regulator about improving their businesses and believed that most would see a FSA visit as beneficial, but insisted that having a channel for open dialogue with the regulator was essential.
He explained: “It’s all about having a two-way process. It’s about the regulator going out and looking at what is happening at a small firm level, but mortgage intermediaries want a two-way dialogue so that they can use their guidance and constructive feedback to improve their businesses. So it’s always useful to prepare for that visit, but it’s about knowing what to do.”
Simon Chalk, mortgage planner at Mortgage Portfolio Services, welcomed guidance about preparing for a regulatory visit, but said that firms should have nothing to fear from the FSA turning up at their doors.
He explained: “If the financial services regulator says it’s coming to visit then you’ve got to prepare yourself thoroughly, as you don’t want to look foolish when it arrives to take stock of your business.
“If it was coming here, I’d immediately look for help so I knew what to do and try to understand what the current themes were. You are always going to be nervous about a visit but I want it to come in and say if something is wrong.”
