The regulator confirmed it had told 200 brokers to withdraw or amend misleading advertising in the past 12 months and a number of these firms had been referred to the FSA’s enforcement division after wider problems were discovered, including inadequate systems and controls.
Vernon Everitt, retail themes director at the FSA, commented: “Financial advertising has a massive influence on the decisions people make. So it must be clear, fair and not misleading, leaving people with a balanced picture of the key pros and cons. This is particularly the case in advertisements by brokers in the non-conforming market, where people are making one of the most important financial decisions of their lives. We need to see standards here rising – and fast.”
The FSA has already warned the market that it was unhappy with the way some firms were promoting their businesses.
Julian Wells, head of marketing at Mortgages plc, believed it was the biggest news for mortgage marketing since ‘Mortgage Day’.
“So much has been written in the press and the guidelines issued, but this issue has obviously come to a head. The FSA has decided to take high-profile, drastic action and this will send alarm bells ringing to those brokers advertising in the non-conforming market.”
The Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI) launched a factsheet to help brokers produce compliant adverts in August and Rob Griffiths, associate director at AMI, urged its members to refer to this advice before undertaking non-conforming advertising.
Griffiths said: “There’s a clear message coming from the FSA here. Firms who publish non-compliant promotions can expect further action.”
