How we made Consumer Duty personal for our private wealth clients

If you want to dent the chances of anyone reading a blog post, include the phrase “Consumer Duty” prominently.

Like I just did.

But bear with me and, if you have, that means you’ll probably know about the impact of this step-change in oversight to set higher and clearer standards for consumer protection across financial services.

Judging by the feedback from our clients and the continuing excellence of our net promoter scores, the quality of our service is something about which we’ve been very proud well before the duty was a glint in the regulator’s eye.

So a year on from the introduction of Consumer Duty, what can we say has changed?

In short, for those companies, like us, which have thrived by ensuring their clients come first, it’s business-as-usual but set against a more rigorous index of professional practice.

We hold great store by doing the right thing and our growth and performance since 2005 is testament to this enduring principle.

And we welcomed what Consumer Duty brought in terms of constructing a framework to make sure every entity in the financial advisory sphere followed this lead.

Essentially, it sets a new standard for consumers to consider how their adviser serves them. Call it a kitemark, hallmark or a seal of authority, enacting and integrating the duty is an acknowledgment of not only reaching but a commitment to go above and beyond the required standard. It’s something everyone should look for in their dealings with the advisory industry.

What Consumer Duty meant for us was an opportunity to carry out a root and branch review of our service; essentially, an individual appraisal of each of our 4,000-plus Private Wealth clients, establishing what element of the service was most valuable to them, and creating a bespoke fee agreement.

This meant we were able to ensure on a granular level that we continue to offer, a value added service proportionate to each and every person we advise.

Obviously, we’re proud of taking this significant change in our stride – just one of the reasons I’ve put pen to paper – and see it as further evidence, if it were necessary, of delivering continuous improvement across our business. That we did so by way of a stand-alone project many months ahead of the deadline indicates how important it was and continues to be.

In so doing, we are closely reflecting the intent driving Consumer Duty, to set a trajectory for the industry to prove it is doing its utmost for the people who matter most, their clients.

Helen Lovett, Chief Operating Officer at Foster Denovo, shared her insights on Consumer Duty in a recent article featured in Portfolio Adviser. Click here to read the complete article on their website.