St James’ Place has launched new tools to help its partners identify and better support vulnerable clients, amid increasing pressure from the FCA around client vulnerability.
The tools, from Comentis and MorganAsh, will help to determine the nature of any vulnerability, what it means and what can be done to help the client.
A report from the Financial Conduct Authority published last year found nearly 28 million UK adults are estimated to be at risk of financial vulnerability at any one time.
SJP said the new tools will allow its partners to carry out an online assessment and provide a report outlining the findings, as well as guidance on what steps to take next. This can be stored to create a record of vulnerabilities and actions taken.
The wealth management firm has worked with Comentis over the last year to run trials and provide feedback on the tool, which has been created by those working within mental health and capacity, financial vulnerability assessments and psychology.
Partners will now also have access to the MorganAsh Resilience System (MARS), a platform that uses answers from client consultations to calculate an objective rating on the degrees of vulnerability for each client and provide recommendations on next steps.
MARS supports clients when conducting mental health assessments and when introducing clients to the concept of power of attorney, in bereavement counselling, providing tailored longevity estimates to inform retirement planning, and when assisting customers in sourcing care for later life.
Jonathan Barret, chief executive of Comentis, said: “At a time of mounting regulatory pressure and increasing customer vulnerability, deploying tech powered solutions that will better support firms such as SJP in the identification and triaging of vulnerable clients has never been more paramount.
“Our clinical and digital-based solution allows us to deliver a vital solution for advisers in the identification and support of their vulnerable clients. It is great to be aiding SJP in their efforts towards supporting vulnerable clients.”
Andrew Gething, managing director at MorganAsh, added: “Increasing regulatory pressure from the FCA to ensure vulnerable clients are treated fairly means it is more important than ever for financial advisers to have the capabilities to fully understand and support their customers. MARS provides advisers with a range of consistent and comprehensive services that align with FCA regulations to help support vulnerable customers. We are delighted to be partnering with SJP.”
