The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has today launched a consultation proposing new rules requiring insurance firms to report general insurance value measures data to the FCA for publication.
As well as requiring firms to report their general insurance value measures data, the FCA also proposes to extend the scope of value measures reporting to cover most general insurance products, as well as an additional measure to identify where unhappy consumers have made a complaint as part of the claim process. Furthermore, the consultation proposes that firms must use the value measures data to determine whether their products offer value to their customers as required by the FCA’s existing rules.
The consultation follows a successful value measures pilot programme, which the FCA has been running since 2016. According to an FCA announcement, the pilot had “a positive impact in the market” and has improved transparency and awareness of a common set of measures of product value, thus helping firms assess the value of their products and make improvements if necessary.
“It’s encouraging to see that the value measures pilot has been successful and that firms have already been using the data to make changes and product improvements,” said Christopher Woolard, executive director of strategy and competition at the FCA. “We’ve identified poor product value as a key area of harm in this market. The proposals we’ve set out today aim to increase competition on product value, which will benefit firms and consumers.”
The window for commenting on the FCA’s proposals closes on April 30.
