FIN. TeamPeter Wyman’s report on a review of debt advice funding has been published. The report makes several recommendations, including:
- face-to-face advice should still be widely available but there should be general and phased shifts by free-to-client providers from face-to-face to phone and then to webchat;
- free-to-client providers should commit to 20% efficiency savings over the next 2 financial years, to be achieved by technology and collaboration
- MAS should continue to be funded solely by FCA levy, which should be temporarily increased for the next 2 years
- those who benefit from Fair Share should pay for it
- the Government should plan a one-off awareness campaign
- if a “breathing space” is introduced, only authorised or exempt advisers should be able to apply for it on behalf of their client
- MAS should upgrade its Debt Advice Locator tool
- all relevant codes of conduct for creditors should commit them to drawing free advice and MAS to consumers
- all debt advice businesses should have a quality assurance process authorised by FCA and reported to FCA, and MAS should develop a process to help smaller advisers to meet their obligations
- all authorised debt advisers should have a debt advice qualification before they can offer debt advice unassisted and should be subject to CPD requirements
- there should be a debt advice Tsar.
