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June 2013

Alan Newman: The FCA Paper on Behavioural Economics – 3 Observations and a Request

by ProtectionReview 18/06/13

In April this year the topic that the FCA chose for its first Occasional Paper was Behavioural Economics.  The Paper has much to commend it but there are a number of shortcomings which, if left unchallenged, could undermine the potential for consumer and industry benefit.  For the purposes of this brief article I offer three observations but first we need a bit of scene setting. Our ancestors were governed by three imperatives:  finding food; making sure they didn’t end up as food for something else; and sex.  Pretty much the same imperatives that apply today in Canary Wharf or Croydon.…
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Peter Barnett asks “Consumer Protection with ‘Financial Products’ – a level playing field?”

by ProtectionReview 13/06/13

A Bill currently going through Parliament has significant implications for the way the Financial Services Industry is regulated versus other potential providers of what could loosely be termed ‘Financial Products’. Clause 34 of the new Care Bill (1) re-emphasises the role the Government sees for Deferred Payment (DP) agreements in funding care fees. A DP is an agreement for a Local Authority (LA) to pay an adults care costs, secured by a charge against the adult’s legal or beneficial interest over his or her home. Some commentators claim that DP’s are in reality unregulated Financial Products that will compete unfairly…
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