Consumer Duty
Your essential guide to Consumer Duty best practice
3 min read 28 Aug 25
In the two years since it was introduced Consumer Duty has continued to evolve and our updated guide reflects the latest thinking and best practice. The Duty has become the FCA’s cornerstone for setting higher standards in the industry and putting consumers’ needs first.
For firms across the regulated retail financial services landscape, this means the Consumer Duty is far from a ‘one and done’ exercise. Instead, it’s something that a business needs to live and breathe, continuously reviewing practices to ensure it stays aligned with the rules and embedding its principles at the highest level. As the FCA puts it, prioritising good customer outcomes should be as important to a board or leadership team as financial performance, risk and strategy.
Our guide to Consumer Duty is a helpful tool, which you can return to any time, ensuring good customer outcomes and the Duty stay fresh and front of mind.
What’s in the guide?
We start by setting Consumer Duty in context, explaining where it fits and importantly how it differs from other rules and regulations, such as Treating Customers Fairly.
The key distinction with Consumer Duty is that it goes much further than other regulations and our guide explains exactly how and why, by re-capping the cross-cutting rules and each of the four Consumer Duty outcomes.
We already know that Consumer Duty is very much an ongoing effort but exactly what do you need to keep on top of, and how? Throughout the guide you’ll find information about the areas advice firms should consider monitoring or reviewing on an ongoing basis.
Examples include reviewing the price and value of the products and services you provide, and monitoring outsourced or third-party service providers to check these meet ‘Consumer support’ standards under the Consumer Duty.
A best practice plan
With the Consumer Duty in place for two years, advisers should have embedded the regulation in their business by now. But having our ‘plan for best practice’ infographic to hand will no doubt prove useful when reviewing the processes you have in place.
However you decide to use it, working through the various stages of the best practice plan should give you the key elements you need for complying with the Duty.
Practical tips for advice firms
You’ll find lots of helpful detail and practical tips on each of the four Consumer Duty outcomes: Products and Services; Price and Value; Consumer Understanding and Consumer Support. These include looking at next steps for implementing the outcomes at a practical level and key questions that advice firms must ask themselves to ensure they are up to speed.
The guide highlights important points to look out for as you go, such as the Price and Value outcome which the FCA is focusing particularly closely on. Or the importance of considering vulnerable characteristics, not just as part of the Consumer Understanding outcome, but at every stage of the rules.
More change on the way?
In March 2025, the FCA announced its Consumer Duty review, including plans to roll out guides for small firms. This followed the FCA’s call for input in 2024 which asked firms for opinions on the cost-burden of regulation, with a possible view to streamlining rules and regulations.
Despite its name, the Consumer Duty review is not about changing the Duty itself, but rather how it interacts with other existing rules. The FCA has confirmed it will publish dedicated guides for small firms in 2025, though a specific release date has not yet been announced.
With the core outcomes and principles at the heart of the Consumer Duty very much here to stay, this guide is a valuable resource that can make staying on top of regulation that little bit easier.
Take a moment to read the Consumer Duty Best Practice for Advisers guide
The information contained in this page is for professional Financial Adviser use only. If you are a private investor, please visit the Private Investor section or contact your Financial Adviser for more information.