As some may already know, the UK's financial watchdog, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) is not very good with figures. From the list of contacts on the "Money made Clear" website from the FSA:


Quote:

Organisations that can help you 0845 numbers will be charged at the local rate based on current charges from BT landlines. Charges for calls from mobile phones and other networks may vary.

The irony is that the first organisation is the Advertising Standards Authority followed by Ofcom. It appears it requires the help first.  ::)

The FSA's Money Made Clear is for individual consumers and has now changed the 0845 number to 0300 500 5000.

The business helpline is still 0845.  :'(

Dave wrote on Apr 5^th, 2009 at 8:25pm:

The FSA's Money Made Clear is for individual consumers and has now changed the 0845 number to 0300 500 5000. The business helpline is still 0845.  :'(

I made a formal complaint to the FSA early on last year about their continued use of 0845 numbers and pointing about COI and Varney advice and the introduction of 0300 and Ofcom's views on 084/7 number use in the public sector.  I had already succeeded in an earlier complaint in getting them to stop describing their 0845 number for consumers as being "local rate".

I received a 3 page long letter back basically saying that while they noted my many points they had no current plans to change from using 0845, although they may review the matter again in the future.   They said I could take the matter to the Complaints Commissioner if I wanted to.  Instead I emailed back asking for an internal review but nothing further was forthcoming.

So it would seem that despite having not admitted they were wrong when responding to me by letter last year and despite the BT change in 084/7 call prices that the water has finally got too hot for them on the 0845 number question.  I wonder if this is all connected with the FSA's now very poor public image over the banking sector collapse and a new need to try and present themselves as whiter than white with the public?  Or perhaps a particularly nasty contract with the external company that handled their complaints from the general public has now finally come to end and been re-negotiated to include the use of 03 numbers?

I should have taken the matter to the Complaints Commissioner but these things all require so much time and energy.  It is pretty disgraceful though that the senior policy manager I emailed at the FSA to ask for a further internal review never even responded to my email :o >:(