Jonathan Davidson, speaking at FCA’s webinar on mortgage forbearance, discussed what FCA is seeing the mortgage markets and reiterated its expectations on firms. His key takeaways were:
- FCA sees an increasing desire for return to business as usual – but it’s not clear what that looks like;
- many mortgage deferrals have now expired or are about to, and many customers have resumed payments – but some will still struggle;
- firms need to adapt to operational challenges such as:
- moving staff into different business areas to reflect customer demand;
- keeping staff trained and motivated in a remote working environment; and
- continuing to check that outsourced service providers are delivering the consumer outcomes firms need;
- getting the balance right when dealing with the borrowers who still need help – he noted FCA’s views on automation versus the need to deliver outcomes that are right for specific borrowers; and
- FCA will be monitoring how firms have adapted to change, and the outcomes for consumers – and it understands firms are doing their best, but will still take action where it needs to.