James Belfield, Compliance Graduate, Simplybiz inancial ules for Retail ents
e Policy t
tation
Non-financial misconduct
From 1 September 2026, the FCA ' s new rules on nonfinancial misconduct will come into force. The changes will bring serious workplace misconduct, including bullying, harassment and similar behaviours, more clearly within the scope of the Conduct Rules.
The FCA has been clear in its expectation that firms should foster healthy cultures and address behaviours that may undermine trust in the financial services sector. Firms should ensure they are prepared for the new requirements, including circumstances in which incidents of non-financial misconduct may need to be reported to the regulator.
We will be providing further guidance on these developments and have begun updating relevant templates and documentation in advance of implementation.
Pure protection market study
Looking further ahead, the FCA is expected to publish the findings of its Pure Protection Market Study during Q3 2026. The review has focused on understanding how the market can better address the UK ' s protection gap, while also examining potential risks to consumer outcomes.
Particular attention has been given to areas such as product-switching incentives, distribution practices, and the overall claims experience for consumers. The final report is expected to identify examples of both good and poor practice across the sector and may signal future regulatory expectations for firms operating in the protection market.
We will continue to monitor developments closely and share any findings or regulatory updates that may have implications for your firm.
Complaints reporting
Towards the end of the year, firms should prepare for the changes to the complaints reporting process, which will take effect from 1st January 2027. The reforms are intended to simplify reporting and reduce the regulatory burden on firms.
Most notably, the FCA has decided to consolidate all complaints returns into a single submission, replacing the existing approach. Firms will now report on a fixed, sixmonth calendar-year basis, with the first reporting period being 1st January to 30th June 2027.
Firms will need to identify where complaints have been made by customers with characteristics of vulnerability and whether a complaint arose from a failure to appropriately consider those vulnerabilities.
Where required, we recommend that complaints registers are amended accordingly to ensure this data is captured accurately.
Simplified advice
By the end of the year, the FCA is expected to release its simplified advice policy statement, which will prescribe rules for the regime. The new framework is intended to broaden access to financial advice by allowing firms to recommend a particular product or course of action based on a single need, rather than a customer’ s wider needs and circumstances.
The regulator hopes this approach will address the advice gap by allowing firms to provide more focused and proportionate support to consumers while maintaining appropriate safeguards.
We will continue to keep you informed of regulatory developments and look forward to providing you with support as these changes progress.
August 2026 | 5