Important Guidance from the FCA
14 APRIL 2020
The FCA recently published a press release urging consumers to keep calm and not to rush into financial decisions at this difficult time (https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/covid-19-savers-stay-calm-dont-rush-financial-decisions). We would whole heartedly echo this message; we are very conscious of the stress that the corona virus has created for you and the difficulties that you are facing day to day. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you want to discuss any aspect of your situation that we might be able to help with or provide reassurance about. And, as the FCA has emphasised, in making any financial decision right now, try to stay calm and not rush into anything.
Both the FCA and the Government have also highlighted the risk that criminals will try to exploit the current situation. Report of scams range from offers of fake virus testing to attempts by fraudsters to lure investors into backing fake schemes to make medical equipment. Scam emails requesting money from people that you might know to help with a travel crisis or assist with hospital treatment are also being used; do take time to call your friend or family member and verify the story that you have been given. The FCA have set out some sensible rules for consumers: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/news-stories/avoid-coronavirus-scams. We would advise you to have a heightened awareness of the risk of financial crime right now and to be particularly sensitive to requests for sensitive personal data, responding to urgent deadlines to make decisions or provide information or discussing your affairs over the phone or by email with individuals who have not properly established their credentials with you. It is always acceptable to take a few moments or “sleep on” a decision just to give yourself time to think and sanity check the situation. Again, we are here to help.
With the known risk that criminals are operating but also awareness that we need to be flexible to the changing environment we have revised our procedures for receiving and executing documents. We are balancing the need to have good security to protect our clients with avoiding cumbersome administration creating problems for you. In particular, we are increasingly able to accept photos and scans of documents, an important step as the Government advise us all to avoid leaving our homes for even routine jobs such as posting mail. As you will already know, the Government advice also means that all staff are working from home and we do not have access to mail at this time. With this in mind, please be aware that we are not processing cheques and that all requests for payments will be made by bank transfer.