The need for clarity and an explanation of the impact of the FSA's polarisation review on the mortgage industry are the key issues raised in Halifax's response.
The bank says previous rounds of consultation tackled its main concern about intermediary advice not being regulated but now it believes the biggest question is whether the depolarised model will be applied to the mortgage sector.
Halifax says to avoid consumer confusion and deliver transparency, depolarisation should cover the whole market as it would avoid the problem of an adviser being multi-tied for life products and ind- ependent for mortgages.
Another point raised in its response is the need for packagers to be covered by regulation, where they are influencing the borrower's choice of mortgage.
Halifax is also asking the Treasury to take a reasonable view on who must be an approved person as the amount of post-completion work on mortgages carried out by lenders would make it costly to regulate all sales-support staff.
Manager (mortgage regulation) Celia Rowland says: “We are asking for clarity from the Treasury on the impact of the FSA's consultation on the polarised market. It must make sure the situation is clear for the customer.”
Standard pulls out of FSAVCs as sales Plummet
Standard Life is pulling out of the FSAVC market due to falling demand for the product since the introduction of concurrency under stakeholder.The company has also repriced its existing FSAVC plans, its retirement annuity contracts and section 32 buyout transfers to within 1 per cent.It says this means that around 85,000 customers will have a […]
Gaskin fears over procuration fees
Burns Anderson network chief Jim Gaskin has raised fears over the future of procuration fees for mortgage brokers as a result of CP121.Many brokers make the vast majority of their income from mortgages through fees paid by lenders but Gaskin says this could soon change.Speaking at the G80 summit, Gaskin cautioned advisers that if they […]
Norwich and Peterborough – Six Month Fixed Rate Bond
Wednesday, May 8, 2002Type: High interest accountMinimum-maximum investment: £1,000-£500,000Interest rates: 4.15% gross a year, 4.07% gross a monthTerm: Six monthsOffer period: Until further noticeWithdrawal penalties: No penalty provided £1,000 remains in thebond. Otherwise 30 days’ loss of interest on amountwithdrawnTel: 0845 3002511
Ail's well that ends well
One of my colleagues suffered a heart attack last July and after six months our employer terminated his employment contract. Neither he nor our employer had any insurance against ill health.My previous employer did and pay continued until recovery and return to work. Can I do something about this myself? Yes, you can do something. […]
Strong dollar can be a powerful driver of UK dividend growth in 2015
By Robin Geffen, fund manager and CEO
This year threatens to be a challenging one for UK dividend hunters. Last year saw an all-time record amount paid out in UK dividends — some £97.4bn, according to research from Capita Dividend Monitor. Yet as Capita also pointed out, out the biggest single factor driving the growth in the fourth quarter of last year was easy to identify: the rising US dollar.
In our view, this trend is much more than simply a one-quarter phenomenon. It is actually the most profound issue to get right as a UK equity income investor in 2015. We believe that the US dollar will continue to strengthen significantly from its current level. This is due more to the US economy’s demonstrable de-coupling from the rest of the world than to a view on the UK. The US has a strong chance of tightening monetary conditions this year without jeopardising growth or de-stabilising its housing market. The same can unfortunately not be said about the UK.
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Lloyds faces up to HBOS whistleblower case again
After allegedly silencing a whistleblower who wrote an internal report criticising Lloyds Banking Group’s handling of fraud, Lloyds Banking Group has agreed to reopen the case, The Financial Times reports. Using her insight from working as an employee in the bank’s high-risk division, Sally Masterton claimed that some of HBOS’ executives from the Reading branch […]
MAS adviser directory passes 7,000 users
The Money Advice Service’s Retirement Adviser Directory now has more than 7,000 advisers listed, the guidance body has revealed. A total of 3,719 firms are now part of the directory, MAS says in its final annual report before merging with The Pensions Advisory Service and Pension Wise later this year to create a new single […]
Nic Cicutti: Issues at FOS swept under the carpet again
New report fails to acknowledge life-changing consequences of delayed and poor decisions
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