The UK’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), is conducting a review into the support offered to berevead customers by advice firms, platforms and wealth management firms, it revealed today.
The regulator carried out research which found just 47% of bereaved clients believed they received the right support following the death of a loved one. As a result, it said its review would look at how investment firms communicate with customers following a death.
Certain firms will be contacted as part of the review, and the FCA will focus on “how they support vulnerable customers, their service standards, and how fees are handled on bereaved accounts”.
The FCA said it will look at the whole experience for the client from when the firm is told about the bereavement to the settlement or transfer of investments.
“When someone loses a loved one, the last thing they need is confusing letters, delays and poor service from their financial provider,” said FCA head of department for consumer investments Kate Tuckley.
The report will be published later this year, with examples of good and bad practice included.
