The Early Warning System allows compliance officers to set parameters so if an application doesn’t contain all the necessary details, they are contacted via e-mail or text message so they can chase it up and avoid unnecessary complications later on.
High-quality record-keeping and other issues of compliance have become huge priorities since the implementation of regulation and intermediaries often find it expensive, both in time and money, to ensure they are following Financial Services Authority (FSA) rules.
Richard Angliss, director of Home Buyer Systems, said: “We have always been aware that the best mortgage and general insurance sales and compliance system must be based on managing potential risks proactively, and this can only be done effectively if there is a facility to intervene in the process before the transaction has been completed and it is too late.
“In view of the FSA’s current concerns about adequate systems and controls, we expect the Early Warning System to be taken up rapidly by the majority of our existing customers and also generate a lot of new enquiries.”
However, Mike Fitzgerald, sales director at Brentchase Financial Services, is less sure. “While some companies may be looking to enhance their compliance systems, a lot of people will have already sorted theirs,” he said. “The more experienced intermediaries will know what they are doing when it comes to compliance so they won’t need to spend a lot of money. Also, these things are not going to be cheap so sole practitioners are going to have something set up already and can’t afford to spend loads on something new. The ship is a lot tighter now as we’ve had mortgage regulation for 18 months and people should already have compliance sorted.”
