Standard Life is to review all of its non-advised annuity sales dating back to 2008 at the request of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The regulator published its review of non-advised annuity sales on Friday, saying it had found no evidence of an industry-wide failure to provide customers with sufficient information about enhanced annuities through non-advised sales.
The FCA’s concerns, however, were born out of sales from a “small number” of firms where communications took place orally, usually over the phone, which were likely to have resulted in some customers purchasing a standard annuity when they were eligible for an enhanced product.
The review assessed more than 1,200 non-advised sales at seven different firms which, between them, accounted for about two-thirds of the whole annuity market, the regulator said.
Those who were asked to review their non-advised sales of the last eight years will have to provide redress where appropriate, the FCA said. The regulator could not specify which or how many firms were asked to review their sales.
Standard Life said in a statement: “At the request of the FCA, Standard Life will conduct a review of all non-advised annuity sales from July 2008 to identify whether our customers received sufficient information about enhanced annuities to make the right decisions about their purchase. It is not yet possible to determine a reliable estimate of the quantum of any redress associated with this process.”
The regulator has encouraged all firms to consider how they can strengthen their communications and sales processes to make sure customers are getting all the information they require at the right time.
It has also urged customers who have already taken out an annuity, but feel they were given insufficient information about enhanced annuities, to bring this up with their provider.
In July, the FCA launched an additional probe into the non-advised drawdown market. It said it was concerned consumers were making poorly-informed decisions on higher-risk products.
The review followed the publication of FCA data suggesting 42% of customers going into drawdown did not use financial advice in the post-pension freedom world.
The post Standard Life to review non-advised annuity sales following FCA report appeared first on Retirement Planner.