The Financial Conduct Authority has hit back at an accusation it ‘buried bad news’ over annual changes to mortgage broker fees on the day of the Brexit referendum result.
The financial regulatory body says it simply put an update in its rules and regulations on its website on Friday that its board had agreed the fee changes.
It told EYE the plan was always to release the changes to the fee-blocks yesterday (June 30) and pointed out that the notification of its release is now on its home page.
“The paper is out. It’s not hidden – it’s on the front page of our site,” a FCA press officer stated.
Brokers will be sent an invoice and can also find out how much they must now pay in fees with a calculator on the regulator’s website.
Umbrella group the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI) issued a press release on Tuesday saying the regulator had put out a notice it had implemented the fees on Friday “under the cover of Brexit”.
Robert Sinclair, chief executive of AMI, said it had not advised stakeholders or overtly published the fact on their website of the fee changes and that the FCA had not done its usual feedback and policy statement on the change.
He stated: “The FCA appears to care little for the organisations that fund it.
“It is no longer able to meet the simple repetitious timetable of fees consultations, as they appear too excited looking for competition issues in markets where little concerns exist.”
Strange how how buyers are being charge excessive fees by mortgage companies and the like but letting agents are being asked to work for free. Maybe we now know who have best mates in the political system!
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