Over 16,800 individual IFAP members now verified weekly against the FSA database (Trade)
- Only individuals registered by the FSA can be IFAP members
- Weekly checks ensure the database is constantly accurate
- Qualifications also verified with awarding bodies
IFA Promotion, the organisation promoting the benefits of independent financial advice, has recently undertaken major work to its membership database. The work ensures that all of the 16,800 Registered Individual member IFAs (based at over 9,000 branches) currently listed on the IFAP database undergo a weekly check against the FSA data to ensure that they are fully authorised by the regulator.
This activity is further evidence of IFAP’s ongoing commitment to ensuring consumers have access to top quality independent financial advice. This is more important than ever given the high profile of IFAP’s online ‘Find an IFA’ services which are now available on 55 partner websites as well as www.unbiased.co.uk.
IFAP already conducts a 100% audit each year to ensure that all IFAs on the IFAP database meet its strict membership criteria. This means that firms must:
- Offerwhole of market independent advice
- Have an investment IFA based at the branch
- Offer a fees option for each product area listed in their top eight (including General Insurance and Protection).
Although IFAP has always checked these criteria, and also that member firms listed on the database are authorised, a full weekly check now also takes place to ensure that all individuals are registered with the FSA, to ensure the utmost hygiene and accuracy in the data it provides to consumers.
IFAP’s checking process includes;
Check 1: Does the IFA have an FSA Individual Reference?
All IFAs (Registered Individuals) must be registered with the FSA in order to practice. When they are registered, they are given an FSA Individual Reference. This is a unique number and if an IFA does not have it, then they are not allowed to appear on the IFAP database.
Check 2: Is the Registered Individual active?
The FSA individual data also gives a ‘status’ value for each RI. This confirms whether they are active, inactive, banned, deceased etc. Members are only allowed on the database if their status is ‘active’.
Check 3: Is the Registered Individual’s firm the same as that registered at the FSA?
All of the other data supplied by the FSA concerning firms is then checked to ensure that the FSA has the RI registered at the same firm that IFAP does. IFAs, like the population as a whole, are not always the best at keeping the authorities completely up-to-date on their movements. If an IFA has moved from one company to another and has tried to update their IFAP entry before telling the FSA, they will be removed from the database. This also stops member firms from giving IFAP the names of RIs who have moved on.
Check 3 becomes very complex when dealing with networks (large companies spread over many branches with a common FSA firm number).
The FSA Individuals data is run against the IFAP database every week. Any RI that fails any or all of the three checks is automatically removed. IFAP also verifies weekly that its members have permissions from the FSA to conduct business listed in their top eight product areas.
David Elms, Chief Executive of IFA Promotion, commented: “IFAP has been working hard to make a number of changes to maintain the hygiene factor of its database and overall search experience. Firstly, IFAP has been supplied data on Registered Individuals from the FSA since August 2005. Early in 2006 we began to use this data to check authorisation of our individuals. We now also ask them to declare that they are IFAs. We believe we are the only source of 100 per cent genuine IFAs as even the FSA does not have this information.
“Secondly, we also ask IFAs for information on which incremental qualifications / designations they hold and this information is also verified with the corresponding awarding bodies. We now hold verified details of over 20,000 incremental qualifications/ designations held by member IFAs. We hope to make even more changes to this part of the database in the coming months.
“Finally, IFAP has recently approached the FSA asking them to consider data capturing IFAs payment methods – either ‘fees or commission’ or ‘fees only’ – to enable IFAP to verify this information and to make this selection criteria available to consumers looking for local IFAs. We believe that these things will go a long way to ensuring that consumers are getting exactly the independent financial adviser that best suits their needs.”
-ends-
For further information please contact:
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David Elms |
Laura Wood/Kate Horne |
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Chief Executive |
Lansons Communications |
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IFA Promotion |
020 7294 3689 / 020 7566 9716 |
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020 7833 3131 |
For expert comment or case studies from over 200 media-friendly IFAs, journalists should call IFA Promotion’s Media Services hotline on
020 7294 3682 or search online at www.unbiased.co.uk/media
1. Independent Financial Adviser Promotion
IFA Promotion, is the organisation established in 1989 to promote the value and accessibility of independent financial advice to the public. It represents around 9,000 firms of independent financial advisers across the UK, incorporating almost 17,000 registered individuals. These individuals hold over 20,000 incremental qualifications which are each individually verified by the awarding body. IFA Promotion welcomes the prominent display of incremental qualifications and further developments into the credentials of independent financial advice.
IFA Promotion is sponsored by 31 leading financial institutions, and in the past 12 months, over 600,000 consumers and businesses used unbiased.co.uk to find local independent financial advice.
IFA Promotion believes Independent financial advice should be:
Affordable. The option to take independent financial advice should be available, by right, to all- not just the wealthiest in society.
Convenient. IFAs should be available in the location of the consumer’s choice, wherever they live in the UK.
Transparent. It must be clearly transparent to consumers who is able to offer independent financial advice and who is not.
2. Independent Financial Adviser Promotion’s sponsors
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Aberdeen Asset Management |
Lincoln Financial Group |
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Abbey |
Mortgage Express |
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AEGON Scottish Equitable Plc |
National Savings & Investments |
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Alliance Trust |
NatWest Business Banking |
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AXA Life |
New Star Investment Funds |
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Bright Grey |
Norwich Union Life |
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BUPA Health Services |
Prudential |
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Canada Life Ltd |
Scottish Life |
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The Children’s Mutual |
Scottish Life International |
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Clerical Medical Investment |
Scottish Widows Plc |
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Defaqto |
Skandia UK Group |
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Friends Provident |
Standard Life Assurance Company |
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GE Life |
UnumProvident |
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Invesco Perpetual |
Webline Limited |
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Legal & General |
Zurich Intermediary Group |
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London Mortgage Company |
Registered Office: IFA Promotion Ltd, 90 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5UB. Registered in Scotland: No. 114606