Knowledge Bank Turns On Consumer Duty Flags For Traders

Knowledge Bank is a UK database of loan criteria. Today, they added a special “flag” that will let brokers know when they look for a piece of criteria that could mean a client is vulnerable.

The flag is going up six weeks before the Consumer Duty rules go into effect. These rules will force financial institutions to do a lot more to protect consumers.

The flag will help traders find out about a borrower’s risk as soon as possible. It will let them know that they may need to ask the client more questions and be more careful.

Over the next few weeks, Knowledge Bank will also add the flag to the “Evidence of Research” so that a broker’s compliance file can have written proof that he or she did the research.

The CEO of the Knowledge Bank, Nicola Firth, says:

“One of the most challenging aspects of Consumer Duty is identifying instances of vulnerability as it is far more complex than many of us may realise given the transient nature of vulnerability at various stages and events in people’s lives.

The Knowledge Bank flag, being visible at the very first stages of a searching for a mortgage will help brokers to be aware of when they need to put additional measures in place at the very beginning of the advice process.”