Govt opens consultation on amending definition of financial advice

Opinions sought on wording, costs, benefits and risks

The government has opened its consultation on amending the UK definition of financial advice, with the stated aim of giving firms "the confidence to develop better and more tailored guidance services to help customers make informed financial decisions".

The consultation document, which was published today, sets out the background to the issue and seeks views on the potential costs and benefits of the change as well as the associated risks. The Financial Advice Market Review (FAMR), which was published in March, suggested some people would benefit from "high-quality and more specialised and detailed guidance services". It also concluded, however, one of the principal reasons firms were reluctant to offer "this potentially less expensive guidance to consumers" was uncertainty about what constitutes regulated advice. According to today'...