Financial Services Authority Visit

[sherryberry]

I'm a PA in a Financial Advisers. FSA recently contacted us to say they would be making a two day visit in March. No reason given.

Has anyone gone through one? What were your experiences? How far do they go back.

Any info would be gratefully appreciated.

[Priesty]

We had one in December, with 15 minutes notice, very scary. They spent 8 hours going through files, accounts, procedures. They appeared to only be concerned with cases from 2005. The key items investigated were firstly single premium ASU's. Where one was sold, we needed to prove that a monthly alternative was offered and discounted. Also they wanted explanations if the period of cover didn't match the initial length of the fixed/discounted deal etc.

They were also querying if we had given cost comparisons where free legal deals were available and not taken up.

Being a lowly admin person, I didn't sit in on the visit, but these are a few things I picked up.

p.s They will check certificates, letterheads, websites, IDD's, sales aids, accounts. If you have any specific queries I can try and find out.

[sherryberry]

Many thanks for that info - very helpful indeed. Particularly regarding timescale and checking certificates etc - thanks again.

Has anyone else had an inspection? Our company does mainly investments (bonds) and pensions (transfers).

[Miss Zippy]

This sounds like a routine risk assessment visit. The FSA are currently very �hot� on the following, so expect questions to be raised and documents to be checked relating to: Business Continuity Planning (do you have a business continuity plan/do all staff know about it/it is tested on a regular basis/can you demonstrate that you actually have the resources and back-up stated in your plan), Financial Promotions (are your financial promotions �signed off� at a senior level (e.g. compliance officer) and are they clear, fair and not misleading),Training and Competency (can the firm demonstrate that all staff who are �approved persons� are competent/are job descriptions and organisation charts up to date?), Financial Crime (are your anti-money laundering procedures up to scratch?), are senior management aware of the risks that faces the business and how have these risks been mitigated (do you have an up-to-date Risk Map?), Standards of Advice (if your firm gives financial advice, the FSA will want to look through client records to see if advice given matches their risk profile and personal circumstances etc), Regulatory Reporting (are you up to date on reporting and have you created and retained records relating to reporting?). The FSA will, of course, enquire into matters peculiar to your firm, but the above is a overview on what you can expect the FSA to look into.

[sherryberry]

Thank you very, very much for taking the time to write such a full reply. Really appreciate your help.

[Miss Zippy]

You're welcome. Hope it goes well!