The FSA, in a factsheet entitled ‘FSA regulation of mortgage arranging and advising – will I need to be authorised?’ claims that the exact interpretation of the legislation will need to be interpreted by the courts. Though this is more likely to mean the Financial Ombudsman Scheme (FOS)
John Ellis, head of public affairs at the Life Insurance Association (LIA), said: “To be honest the whole definition of what is regulated and non-regulated advice is a legal minefield, and I urge all intermediaries to play it safe.”
Bill Warren, network director of Complete Mortgage & Loan Services Ltd, said it would be the regulated firm or Principal who could be held responsible if a client felt they had been given advice by the non-regulated introducer. “This is something we are taking very seriously, we are insuring that all our introducers are fully aware of what they can and can’t say,” he said.
Chris Cummings, director of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI) suggested the safest route for an introducer to take was to stick to the factfind. “If a client feels they have had advice, they have had it,” he warned.
This view was echoed by Mark Mountney, managing director of Premier Mortgage Management, whose firm specialises in dealing with introductions from IFAs. He said: “We have a written agreement that our introducers can not give advice. All we want are the contact details and a brief description about what the client wants, for example a remortgage.”
Mountney went on to urge regulated firms to ensure they had a detailed audit trail for introduced business.
