Advisers need 'safe harbour' to carry out DB triage process, says Webb

'Huge variation in triage process'

Hannah Godfrey
clock • 2 min read

The FCA should provide a "safe harbour" for advisers to undertake early-stage conversations on defined benefit (DB) transfers that will not put them at regulatory risk, Royal London's Steve Webb has said.

In March, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published a consultation paper on ‘improving the quality of pension transfer advice' and raised concerns the ‘triage' process - whereby advisers give an initial steer to clients about a pension transfer inquiry - could cross the boundary into regulated advice. The FCA is encouraging advisers to make sure any initial response is purely generic and educational, and not specific to the client's individual circumstances. Royal London director of policy Steve Webb, however, suggested the regulator's plans to tighten practice around triage cou...

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