Special Official Note For Mortgage Brokers

dunstonh

It has been reported a number of times that the FSA have contracted some teams to search the internet for breaches of financial promotion and advice being given out in an uncompliant manner.

MortgageMamma

AndrewSmith wrote:

Err no, he's been around since June 2005 :rotfl:

Har Har very funny. What I meant was, I'd never seen his posts on the mortgages/property forums, and due to the small post count, he can pretty much be deemed as new! I can't help being a friendly, down to earth and polite woman!

MortgageMamma

If advisors really are so concerned about FSA investigations that they don't post, why don't they just remove their websites from their personal profiles?

Personally, I think the FSA would be better off spending more time examining compliance procedures within actual companies rather than on the internet. There should be some form of protection in place for advisers who help on public forums, especially if they have the "this isnt advice" disclaimer -

Don't you just love this compensation culture we are becoming - like what happened to DunstonH there's some nasty scheming vultures out there

AndrewSmith

MortgageMamma wrote:

If advisors really are so concerned about FSA investigations that they don't post, why don't they just remove their websites from their personal profiles?

Not that this affects me personally but I don't think a website link in a profile is what the FSA are looking for. Most of the advisers and other posters on here, you and I included, have at some point included a weblink in their profile. What they are looking for is actually promotion or advice within the content of a posting or the attached signature / disclaimer.

I think what they are also looking for are things that are a blatant advertisement of one's business, or where someone is asking openly for posters to contact them directly. I've not seen it on this forum but on one homeworkers forum I read on occasion there have been issues with a couple of advisers simply posting 'contact me by email of phone for specific advice and help'. Ridiculous and desperate individuals.

EdInvestor

DunstonH wrote

They (former regulator the PIA in 1966) said it was good to have discussion and it should be encouraged. What they didn't want though was people using it as a way to generate business without following the rules.

AS wrote

My signature in it's current form is the safest way of portraying the required information without any hint of either self promotion or 'financial promotion'.

MM wrote

If advisors really are so concerned about FSA investigations that they don't post, why don't they just remove their websites from their personal profiles?

The regulators' concern would appear to be that advisors are using websites to tout for business. I can understand that, as I have been PMed on a number of occasions ( though I am not an advisor) by posters who thought I was, wanting actual paid advice.

Obviously if people state on their posts that they are IFAs or brokers, then this might encourage people to contact them.Thus if this is a regulatory concern, perhaps they should stop doing it?

It's not done on other financial websites as far as I have noticed, and might thus give the regulators the wrong idea about what goes on here.

MortgageMamma

I see what you mean Andrew, thanks for clarifying that for me. Not being linked to a network and my compliance adviser being on holiday has left me feeling a bit worried.

I wonder how the FSA would look at those firms who very desperately advertise their services in the Ebay auctions!

AndrewSmith

We add this to our signatures in accordance with the site rules given by Martin, where he asks that we state if we have professional experience in the financial field in which we post.

Martin himself actually states that 'brokers are the good guys' and goes on to state that he see's nothing wrong with a poster approaching a broker or IFA from the forums if they feel that person has been particularly helpful.

I would never deny that I have taken on clients from these forums. It is not the intention of my posting here and I will only take the cases on if I have time. Recently I personally have been turning enquiries away as I do not have enough time to do them justice.

AndrewSmith

MortgageMamma wrote:

I see what you mean Andrew, thanks for clarifying that for me. Not being linked to a network and my compliance adviser being on holiday has left me feeling a bit worried.

I wonder how the FSA would look at those firms who very desperately advertise their services in the Ebay auctions!

Kick their sorry little butts I would hope. Anyone who actually approaches a company for mortgage advice advertising on Ebay is asking for trouble.

I think it comes to something when people do not have the wherewithall to set up their own business and have no better marketing plan in place than 'I know lets bung an ad on Ebay' Losers.

MortgageMamma

As for ebaying for mortgage advice, Its laughable isnt it. Its pretty tough when you are new to the game, but you just have to hang in there and find what works for your business model. I'm still testing new things out, but I'd NEVER, EVER lower myself to advertise on ebay - I think the worst thing I did commercially was take over an old advisors business in a little shopfront office in cross hills where nobody ever came through the door - it cost 1800 per quarter and not one person walked in other for directions in 3 months!

ctabuk

Well I am new to this forum true and I want to get it right, but I am basically a Search Engine Optimisation guy and Moderate in webproworld, I've checked with our Mortgage Compliance Officer and she said my sig was fine. But I never say no to getting advice. Cheers David