FCA imposes requirements on Samweb for providing misleading information to consumers
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today announced the imposition of requirements on Samweb.
These directions and requirements include stopping the firm from carrying on any regulated activities, banning Samweb’s current financial promotions and preventing the firm from approving, or communicating, any further financial promotions.
Samweb is a claims management company. It provided claims management services to consumers. The FCA acted to protect customers from misleading financial promotions and to ensure customers have the confidence of dealing with genuine FCA-authorised firms.
The FCA has identified several serious concerns around the way that Samweb operates its business, including the firm’s financial promotions and use of trading names. Samweb appears to have breached regulatory standards when approving financial promotions about mortgage securitisation claims as, among other failings, it misled customers about the likely success of claims.
Samweb also registered the names (or near identical names) of unauthorised entities as trading names of the firm making it appear that they are authorised to carry on activities for which they have no authorisation.
Firms which are FCA authorised need to meet the Threshold Conditions. The FCA has given directions to the firm because the FCA considers that it there has been, or is likely to be, a contravention of financial promotion rules in respect of the financial promotions for mortgage securitisation claims approved by the firm.
The FCA has also imposed requirements on Samweb because the FCA considers that it is failing, or is likely to fail, to satisfy the Threshold Conditions and/or it is desirable in order to advance one or more of the FCA’s operational objectives, which includes securing an appropriate degree of protection for consumers.
The directions and requirements will remain in force unless and until varied or cancelled by the FCA, either on the application of the firm or of the FCA’s own volition.
Financial promotions are how firms communicate financial services and products to consumers. These promotions are often published in many forms such as on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), websites, as well as other media formats.
In third quarter of 2022, the FCA amended or withdrew 4,151 financial promotions.