PIMFA backs calls for financial harm to be included in Government’s Online Safety Bill

17 March 2021

PIMFA backs calls for financial harm to be included in Government’s Online Safety Bill

PIMFA, the trade association for wealth management, investment services and the investment and financial advice industry, consumer rights group Which?, UK Finance, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and the Chair of the Work and Pensions Select Committee  the Rt. Hon. Stephen Timms MP alongside MoneySavingExpert Martin Lewis and the Money and Mental Health Institute have all called for online scams to be included in the Government’s forthcoming Online Safety Bill.

Reacting to the research released today (17 March) by the  Money and Mental Health Institute Liz Field, Chief Executive of PIMFA, commented:

“It is vital that people are protected from all forms of online exploitation and that the most vulnerable in our society are especially protected.

“That six in 10 people want to see online protection from financial harm enhanced comes as little surprise.

“Fraudsters deliberately target the vulnerable as the Money and Mental Health Institute’s research shows. And there is evidence too from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) from Which? and from our own members that shows the sophistication of online scams is such that everyone is, to some degree, now vulnerable to online scams.

“Online fraudsters scam people out of their life savings. The impact of such scams is devastating on the financial and mental wellbeing of victims.

“The Online Safety Bill is a clear opportunity to put in place a legal framework that would help improve consumer protections against what are increasingly convincing online scams.

“Such a framework has significant support from across the financial services industry, consumer rights groups like Which? mental health charities like the Money and Mental Health Institute and the FSCS.

“The internet has inadvertently facilitated fraudsters for many years but a large number of them could be prevented from making victims of consumers with greater cooperation from Domain Name Registration Services, Internet Service Providers and online platforms such as social media and search engines. I hope the government listens to our collective concerns and acts upon them”.

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Notes for Editors:

About PIMFA – the Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association

• PIMFA is the trade association for firms that provide investment management, investment services and advice to everyone from individuals and families to charities, pension funds, trusts and companies.
• The sector currently looks after £1.65 trillion in private savings and investments and employs over 63,000 people.
• PIMFA represents both full and associate member firms. Full members provide a range of financial solutions including financial advice, portfolio management, as well as investment and execution services. They assist everyone from individuals and families, to charities and pension funds, all the way to trusts and companies.  Associate members provide professional services to the PIMFA community.
• PIMFA leads the debate on policy and regulatory recommendations to ensure that the UK remains a global centre of excellence in the wealth management, investment advice and financial planning arena. Our mission is to create an optimal operating environment so that its member firms can focus on delivering the best service to clients, providing responsible stewardship for their long-term savings and investments.
• PIMFA has made numerous recommendations to the FCA regarding the Future of Advice, the Future of Supervision  the FSCS levy – read more.
• PIMFA was created in 2017 as the outcome of a merger between the Association  of Professional Financial Advisers (APFA) and the Wealth Management Association (WMA) with a history as a trade association since 1991 – read more.
• Further information can be found at pimfa.co.uk

Contact

For further information on this release or other press matters please contact:

• Matthew West, PIMFA PR Manager – MatthewW@pimfa.co.uk, +44 (0)20 7382 0376 / +44 (0) 7843 903258
• Sheena Gillett, PIMFA Communications & PR Director – sheenag@pimfa.co.uk, +44 (0)20 7011 9869 / +44 (0)7979 493225