FSA reporting requirements for the FSAVC review issued on the Internet

Firms (mainly IFAs) which advised on or arranged less than 100 FSAVCs have to report details of their review population on or before 15 September 2000. (The original deadline for this was 1 September.) The same deadline of 15 September applies to firms who advised on or arranged between 100 to 1000 FSAVCs.

Firms (mainly product providers) which advised on or arranged over 1000 FSAVCs have to report their review population on or before 16 October 2000.

Firms can submit their reporting requirements either by paper returns, disc or tape. The templates to be used to submit information by tape or disc will be made available on the FSAVC page of the FSA website for firms to download.

Following the success of the FSAVC Roadshows which took place earlier this year, Kelvin Baynton, Manager of the FSAVC Review Team said

I was very pleased with the number of IFA firms who attended the Roadshows. We know that IFA firms and product providers alike have been working very hard on the FSAVC review exercise.

Notes for editors

1. The FSAVC review is a focused exercise using an approach similar to the one used for Phase II of the pensions review. It affects business written between 29 April 1988 and 15 August 1999. Certain categories of FSAVC policyholders (estimated to comprise up to 8% of all FSAVC sales) must be sent a direct invitation to request a review of their case. These categories are:
   • Matched AVC schemes
   • Other subsidised schemes

2. The review of these cases will also deal with those investors who converted a personal pension to an FSAVC and who were waiting to join the matched or subsidised AVC scheme in question when they took out their personal pension (where the investor may also have been subject to double charging). Firms will also have to investigate requests for review and investors have until June 2001 to request a review.

3. The FSAVC Roadshows were attended by nearly 700 people and took place during June in London, Bristol, Warwick, Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester.

4. The FSA regulates the financial services industry and has four objectives under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000: maintaining market confidence; promoting public understanding of the financial system; the protection of consumers; and fighting financial crime.

5. The FSA aims to maintain efficient, orderly and clean financial markets and help retail consumers achieve a fair deal

Appended information

The FSAVC Review Model Guidance update is available from the publications section of our web site. The direct URL is http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/fsavc-review/model-guide-update.pdf.