Speaking at the FSA TCF conference, Clive Briault, managing director of retail markets at the FSA, said improvements had been made by firms to implement the guidelines, but more were certainly necessary. “We have been pleased with the commitment shown by senior management to the TCF initiative, and with their recognition that this is very much a responsibility of senior management, not something to be left to the compliance department. The challenge now is to ensure that the aspirations of senior management are more strongly demonstrated at the interface with customers.”
However he admitted some firms were still failing to provide consumers with the correct information at the point-of-sale. He added: “We still see examples where management information has not yet been considered, or where firms have not yet thought through how to analyse existing information to show how customers are treated.
“There are still challenges, not least in driving change to the frontline of firms’ business and measuring its impact on consumers. But the progress we have seen is a promising sign that this can become a reality.”
Kim Barrett, proprietor at KS Barrett & Associates, said: “Firms should have everything in place to comply with TCF, and if there’s any confusion over the guidelines there is enough opportunity to contact the FSA and go over the issue.”
