All Articles in Financial services

After fifteen years of continuous brick-bats aimed at the 1989 rules, new consumer credit advertisement regulations are coming in October 2004. They demand urgent attention, but are they an improvement?…

In an OFT-commissioned survey, nearly 2000 credit card users were quizzed. Small print in ads got the thumbs down, whilst a summary box of key facts got the thumbs up.…

More and more, UK consumers are taking out one loan to pay off multiple loans. But is the advertising for these services complying with the current regulations? A recent OFT…

The Financial Services Authority recently reported on another six months of enforcement work, tackling misleading ads for financial products.   Topic: Financial services Who: The Financial Services Authority Where: London When: February 2004 What happened: The Financial Services Authority…

Last month we reported a £165,000 FSA fine for misleading financial promotions. Now a still higher fine has been meted out, this time for allegedly misleading ‘pension unlocking’ product ads…

This time the penalty was £165,000 for 2,000,000 newspaper inserts and 236,000 mailings misleadingly promoting high income and precipice bonds.   Topic: Financial services Who: The Financial Services Authority and Chase de Vere…

The Government has just published its consultation paper on radical reforms to the UK’s consumer credit laws. The proposals include scrapping the much-criticised credit ad regulations, but will the suggested…

The Financial Services Authority is due to start regulating most mortgage advertising and selling on 31st October 2004. We report on the new “Mortgage Conduct and Business Rules” and helpful…

In an effort to placate the Commons Treasury select committee in advance of the DTI’s much threatened ‘radical review’ of UK consumer credit laws, UK credit card providers have come…

When Marks & Spencer Financial Services mailed 2.6 million of its storecard holders with a replacement credit card, it thought it was well within legal controls on posting ‘credit tokens’.…

As the FSA controls the advertising for more and more financial products and its rules and guidelines burgeon, advertisers are becoming increasingly frustrated at its inability to offer any significant…

In January 2005, the selling of mortgages and general insurance will be firmly within the remit of the Financial Services Authority. The FSA is developing its new regulatory regime for…