Name: Keith Richards - Applying Consumer Duty to clients in vulnerable circumstances
Start: 2023-11-06T13:18:00Z
End: 2023-11-06T13:18:34.000Z
Location: BrightTALK
Rating: 0

We are a specialist UK financial services group focusing on attractive segments of the UK retirement income market.  The Group is a leading and established provider of retirement income products and services to individual and corporate clients.

In this session, we’ll look at the main themes of the FCA’s Retirement Income Thematic Review. We’ll discuss the key findings and how to translate these into practical steps to demonstrate a robust approach to retirement income advice. We’ll look at the assessment tool released by the regulator as well as other resources that will help to formalise a plan to meet your clients’ retirement objectives.

Join us for this informative and interactive webinar, as we  discuss how to provide a good retirement income advice service that meets the FCA’s standards and delivers positive outcomes for your clients.

By attending this webinar, you’ll be able to:

• Explain the FCA's expectations and principles for providing retirement income advice
• Apply best practices and tools to document and evidence your retirement income advice process
• Evaluate and improve your retirement income advice processes

Retirement - Unpacking the thematic review

In 2024, the FCA will review how firms treat vulnerable customers. They’ll check the approach firms take in understanding and responding to consumer needs and have specifically mentioned the inclusion of older customers in vulnerable circumstances.
But, of course, it’s not just the elderly that face vulnerabilities. What about those who support people with additional care needs? The reality is that by age 50, around half of the population are supporting someone in this way. Often this group is ‘hidden’ as they may not see themselves as unpaid carers, yet the FCA has recognised this issue as a potential driver of vulnerability.
This webinar will give practical guidance on how to identify, understand and support clients with caring responsibilities as well as examine new guidance from the regulator and examples of good practice. 
We’ll also look at a new tool from My Care Consultant designed to help clients and their families avoid harm when dealing with care needs.

Learning Objectives:
By attending this webinar, you’ll be able to:
• Recognise the characteristics and challenges of unpaid carers and how they may affect their financial wellbeing
• Identify the FCA's expectations and guidance on supporting vulnerable customers, including unpaid carers
• Apply practical tips and tools to help your clients and their families navigate the care system and avoid harm

CPD: 60 mins

Vulnerability - How to help the UK's 'hidden' carers

When it comes to reviewing a client’s retirement plan, many things may have changed since the initial advice was given. Those reliant on investments may have seen their funds impacted by recent events, requiring a need to reassess the assets they are using to sustain their financial needs in retirement. For those already using equity release, it’s important to ensure that the plan still meets their needs and if it’s appropriate to use some of the flexible options available.  Perhaps new objectives can be met through further borrowing or there may be an opportunity to reduce the liability.  Depending on the value of the property, changing lifestyle or medical circumstances, it may be appropriate to reassess the use of equity from the home. 

Learning Objectives:

• Consider when it’s appropriate to bring property into an existing retirement plan.
• Understand the options when reviewing ongoing suitability of equity release.
• Recognise how flexible options can be implemented.

CPD: 45 mins

Life stages - Session 2 - Retirement reviews and the use of property

In the first of our ‘Life stages’ webinars on equity release, Karl Steadman speaks to our experts about the role of property as part of a retirement plan.  The transition into retirement might mean settling existing arrangements, a gradual move away from earned income and ensuring all means of meeting initial capital and income objectives have been explored. When it comes to the role of property wealth, there are many options to consider. Recent developments in the market give clients more flexibility, control and ability to personalise their plans.  With all the different types of lending available, there’s a lot to think about. 

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the impact of health and lifestyle for lifetime mortgage arrangements.
• Recognise the flexible options available on lifetime mortgages.
• Discuss the alternative options for using property wealth in retirement planning.

CPD: 45 mins

Life stages - Session 1 - Into retirement

It is clear from the recent FCA thematic review that retirement income continues to be a key focus. The expectation is that firms will have a robust process for ensuring good client outcomes, taking into account risks that are very different to those in accumulation. In this session, we will cover the approaches to producing an ongoing income and the importance of stress-testing these. We’ll also look at the indicators that suggest a guaranteed income would be appropriate and how this can be built in whilst enhancing the overall investment and legacy objectives.

Learning Objectives:
- Understand the key elements of a retirement income advice process
- Recognise the importance and methodology of stress-testing
- Discuss the additional benefits of adding guaranteed income to a drawdown portfolio

Retirement Income - The key steps to securing a financial future

The webinar looks at how blending a guaranteed income producing asset in an investment strategy for your clients in decumulation can help them achieve both their goals and those of your business.

Synopsis:

With the current uncertainties regarding interest rates, inflation, and the challenging market outlook, the detrimental impact on capital values has been in the spotlight.

Consequently for clients in decumulation, advisers are putting a sharper focus on attitude to retirement income risk in client reviews. For many clients, previous perhaps seemingly theoretical questions and discussions around their capacity for loss have become a reality.

Naturally, this has meant a revival in the consideration of guaranteed income solutions, not only due to the improvement of rates compared to recent years, but to work as a core component of investment planning and to bring some certainty back to financial forecasts.

In this session we will look at how this is developing, and how attitude to risk (ATR) tool providers are now acknowledging the need to include guarantees into their forecasts.

Roderic’s presentation will provide a valuable insight into:

- How financial planning businesses are valued, and what factors are taken into account.
- The actions which will make a positive or negative impact.

Learning Objectives:

- Understand why it’s important not to underestimate the key benefits of choice and flexibility in retirement advice.

- Recognise how guaranteed income can be used as a new asset to address your clients concerns regarding retirement income risk.

- Understand business efficiencies that add value to your business, and how quality data and technology plays a crucial role.

CPD: 90 minutes

Retirement renaissance

In this session, featuring all our guest speakers at the conference, we examined some of the themes highlighted in the preceding case study session and explored what actions can be taken to protect those in vulnerable circumstances. The panel highlighted some specific areas where care needs to be taken to protect a client’s wealth and wellbeing. We also looked at some of the real practical issues that advisers and clients are facing. 

Speakers - left to right on screen:

• Jenny Cadman  - Head of Customer Experience, Just
• Tim Farmer - Co-founder and Clinical Director, Comentis
• Robin Melley  - Chartered Financial Planner, Matrix Capital
• Tish Hanifan – Joint-Chair, Society of Later Life Advisers (SOLLA)
• Keith Richards – CEO, Consumer Duty Alliance
• Martin Lines – Development and Events Director, Just (host)

By viewing this session you’ll be able to:

• Recognise the importance of educating and assisting various parties in the advice process around vulnerability
• Examine the cash-flow assumptions required for later life clients
• Discuss the commercial aspects of assisting people in vulnerable circumstances

The big Q&A

This session is designed to challenge the thinking around consumer vulnerability and the perceptions that the terminology can lead to. Robin takes us through the key points of the regulation and translates these into practical action that you can take. Using the principles of the Financial Vulnerability Taskforce charter, he discusses ways to apply your technical and business know-how alongside the skills needed to provide a ‘safe pair of hands’. In particular, this session will explore ways to recognise and combat financial abuse and includes a case study which Robin will refer to. 

By viewing this session, you’ll be able to:

 - Understand the principles of the Financial Vulnerability Taskforce Charter

 - Recognise areas of financial abuse and coercion and how to respond

 - Understand the key areas of knowledge required to assist later life clients and their families

Providing a safe pair of hands for clients in vulnerable circumstances

The Consumer Duty makes it clear that all clients should receive good outcomes, including those in vulnerable circumstances. Whilst vulnerability isn’t confined to those in later life, it is important to understand and respond to characteristics and circumstances that may be present. Capacity in later life can fluctuate, so knowing how much assistance is needed and how this can vary depending on the specific decision is important. In this session, Tish covers how to approach some sensitive issues, the role and duties of attorneys and what firms can do to protect clients from foreseeable harm in later life.

By viewing this session, you’ll be able to:

 - Understand consumer challenges in navigating financial services whilst in vulnerable circumstances

 - Recognise the responsibilities of substituted decision-makers

 - Discuss how to assist clients with reduced capacity to make decisions

Harnessing the power of attorneys to safeguard against foreseeable harm

Tim explores the concept of whether wealth protects people from vulnerability or, conversely, is the cause for potential vulnerable circumstances. He also looks at how living in an ‘instant’ society can impact our capability and resilience and what this, combined with normal cognitive ageing, might mean for how people cope in their retirement.

By viewing this session, you’ll be able to:

 - Understand the links between wealth and drivers of vulnerability

 - Discuss the impact of societal change on consumer vulnerability

 - Consider the aspects of financial and non-financial resilience

Wealth - the great insulator from vulnerability in retirement - fact or fiction?

Join us for an engaging webinar as we explore how technology can be integrated into advice processes to achieve better outcomes in retirement. With the implementation of the Consumer Duty and the need to promote client understanding, we will uncover how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be used to help deliver personalised portfolio reviews, pension statements and other financial communications. In this session, we will explore the real-life benefits of new technology for you and your clients.

By attending this session you will be able to:

1. Recognise the role of technology and where it may be appropriate in client interactions
2. Develop ways of integrating technology for specific tasks
3. Explore ways to improve client communications relating to annual reviews

CPD: 45 minutes

Technology Matters - Intelligent use of AI

Today's lifetime mortgage products offer more options than ever before so you can tailor solutions to meet more client requirements.  For example, more products enable clients to service interest, helping to reduce the impact of interest roll-up and the overall amount borrowed.

The introduction of medical underwriting can also help you to deliver a personalised solution for every client.  In fact, around six in ten people could borrow more or get a better interest rate.  Regulatory scrutiny is already being ratcheted up but medical underwriting helps here too.  The 2020 review of equity release firms by the Financial Conduct Authority raised concerns about personalisation of advice.

Providing your clients' health and lifestyle information means that they could get better deals and helps you respond to the FCA's challenge to demonstrate improved personalisation of advice.  

By combining medical underwriting with a flexible choice of options, it's never been easier to design personalised lifetime mortgage solutions unique to every client. 

Learning Objectives:

- To explore the opportunity in the lifetime mortgage market
- To understand the benefits of interest servicing for your customers
- To understand the ongoing need for lifetime mortgages for maturing interest-only customers
- Understand the importance of health and lifestyle underwriting in relation to lifetime mortgages

CPD - 45 minutes

Lifetime Mortgages - a personal approach for better client outcomes

If ever there was a time to focus on how we improve the experience and outcomes for the most vulnerable, surely now is that time. The FCA have said that they want doing the right thing for vulnerable customers to be deeply embedded into firms. That means we all have a part to play.

Looking towards the full implementation of the Consumer Duty, we need to demonstrate a genuine culture that will promote good outcomes for consumers including those in vulnerable circumstances. It’s important that we respond to the current needs of clients, but also establish practices that can be developed over the long-term.

This session is packed with information, strategies and examples of good practice designed to help you to respond to the needs of clients in vulnerable situations. Just will introduce you to valuable resources that advisers, paraplanners and other staff can use to take practical action. Everyone has experiences to share and we hope that discussing these areas will help you to identify some action points which will help clients and the firm too. 

Learning Objectives:

• Review the key steps from the FCA’s guidance on consumer vulnerability
• Understand the links between vulnerability and the Consumer Duty
• Identify some key action points to implement in relation to consumer vulnerability

CPD:  45 minutes

Vulnerability and the Consumer Duty

Recent guidance around pension transfers brings together some key regulatory and advice principles. To support this, the publication of the Defined Benefit Advice Assessment Tool (DBAAT) provides a basis to help gauge some of the key elements of the planning process. This should address how any benefits foregone could be replaced, including an element of secure income where appropriate. It’s also clear that ongoing advice and planning is as important as the initial advice. 

During this session, we’ll look at the opportunities in the retirement and later life advice markets.  We’ll consider some of the key challenges, including the regulatory considerations. We will also be joined by Seb Sherburn from HUB Pension Consulting to discuss whether it makes sense for you to outsource certain advice areas to help you support more clients in a way that’s cost-effective for your business.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the options for providing advice on DB transfers
• Recognise the potential benefits of outsourcing aspects of advice
• Discuss the associated advice services relating to retirement and later life

CPD:  60 minutes

Defining the benefits of outsourcing

The Consumer Duty makes it clear that all clients should receive good outcomes, including those in vulnerable circumstances. Whilst vulnerability isn’t confined to those in later life, it is important to understand and respond to characteristics and circumstances that may be present.

There are many things a firm can do to protect clients from foreseeable harm in later life. Perhaps one of the most obvious is to ensure that a Power of Attorney is in place should it be needed. The duties of attorneys and the role they play needs to be clearly understood. Capacity can fluctuate, so knowing how much assistance is needed and how this can vary depending on the specific decision is important. There are a number of safeguards that can be put in place and advisers with a good knowledge in this area can really help to create a supportive environment for clients and their families.

In this session, Graham Duffy speaks to Tish Hanifan about ways to identify areas of vulnerability and how clients and families can be supported in later life.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognise the main duties of attorneys
• Understand how family members may be involved in the advice process
• Discuss the nuances of capacity and client decision-making

CPD:  45 minutes

Consumer Duty - extra care in later life

With the forthcoming thematic review of retirement income advice, there is a huge focus on putting a robust plan together. This should meet the outcomes of the Consumer Duty for a client, based on all the information on file. But it’s not just about the hard data - it’s also about understanding the characteristics of the client, their need for flexibility and a range of retirement goals.

And it doesn’t end after the initial plan has been put in place…

The Personal Finance Society’s Good Practice Guide on Income Drawdown states that ‘firms should scope out, document and follow a defined process that is able to evolve. It must include a process to cover the onboarding of new clients and a robust review for existing clients’. 
In this session, we’ll look at a number of ideas as well as industry guidance to show how to review a client’s plan throughout retirement and into later life. We’ll also consider what the regulation tells us about service design and segmentation to ensure that the process remains aligned to each client.

Learning Objectives:

• Examine the key factors in a review process
• Discuss key industry guidance on good practice relating to pension reviews
• Recognise the impact of health, ageing and other client characteristics

CPD:  45 minutes

Retirement reviews and the Consumer Duty

Our Care Specialist, Graham Duffy, is joined today by Just’s Technical Underwriter, Graham Childs, to discuss the underwriting of immediate needs annuity cases for care funding.

Underwriting of annuities, through assessment of medical evidence for retirement cases, started many years ago. In fact, the general underwriting of immediate care annuity cases goes back to around the early 1990s. Something that is perhaps not widely known.

In this session we’ll look at various aspects of “care underwriting” for older people and consider how it may differ from underwriting cases for those of retirement age.

Do different factors need to be considered when it comes to older people? Does the life expectancy conundrum need to be taken into account – i.e. that the longer we live the longer we can be expected to live?

Learning Objectives:
• Understand what is typically considered for care cases
• Consider the developments in care underwriting
• Assess the complexity of underwriting care cases for older people

CPD - 45 minutes

Care Conversations with Graham - underwriting care cases

Healthy, Wealthy... & Vulnerable?

In this interview session, Keith shares valuable insights into how firms should respond to the needs of clients in vulnerable circumstances, what good practice looks like and how this helps to meet the requirements of Consumer Duty. Importantly, we discussed both the compliance and cultural aspects of the regulation, how this differs from what’s gone before and what firms can do to demonstrate better outcomes for clients. 

By viewing this session, you’ll be able to:

 - Recognise the link between Consumer Duty and vulnerability

 - Understand the role of the Consumer Duty Alliance

 - Discuss the cultural and compliance aspects of the regulation in the context of previous and current guidance

Keith Richards - Applying Consumer Duty to clients in vulnerable circumstances

vulnerability

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Keith Richards - Applying Consumer Duty to clients in vulnerable circumstances

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