IRELAND Trends and Developments Contributed by: Grainne Callanan and Elaine Long, Matheson LLP
guidance incorporates and updates the exist- ing CPC guidance and includes new guidance on the changes under the revised CPC, which was informed by feedback received during the consul- tation process. • Guidance on Protecting Consumers in Vulnerable Circumstances; and • Guidance on Securing Customers’ Interests. The Central Bank provided a number of supplemental tools as follows: • a Mapping Tool –showing where the existing CPC, the Code of Conduct on Mortgage Arrears, and the S.I. No. 196/2020 – Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013 (Section 48) (Licensed Moneylenders) Regulations 2020 are reflected in the revised CPC; and • a redline of the changes to the regulations from the original version included in CP 158, as follows: (a) Standards for Business Regulations; and (b) Consumer Protection Regulations. Finally, the Central Bank provided an Excel document detailing the changes to the regulations from the origi- nal version included in the CP 158 Changes and Clarifications to the Proposals in CP 158 While the proposals were generally welcomed, it is clear from the Feedback Statement that financial ser- vice providers raised concerns regarding implementa- tion, costs and operational impacts. On the basis of such feedback and concerns, the Central Bank made a number of changes to the proposed regulations and guidance documents, while also providing clarity and additional guidance on key areas of focus. The following is an overview of some of those main changes and clarifications, from an insurance per- spective. Changes and clarifications to securing customers’ interests The CPC does not prescribe what can or should be done by firms in every particular scenario or set of indi- vidual circumstances. It articulates what is required of firms generally, so that firms can determine for them-
selves which actions they should take to secure their customers’ interests. The way a business measures its success should include consideration of outcomes for its customers. The key issue here was achieving greater clarity and predictability regarding the expectation that consumer interests will be protected. Some of those changes and clarifications are as follows. • Acting on behalf of a customer – it was clarified that ‘acting in the best interests’ and ‘securing cus- tomers’ interests’ in the context of the CPC does not mean that a financial services firm is ‘acting on behalf of’ a customer, or in any way taking respon- sibility for making decisions that could and should be made by the customer themselves. • Assisted Decision-Making Act – it was clarified that the proposals do not conflict with the Assisted Decision-Making Act (“ADMA”). The guidance on protecting consumers in vulnerable circumstances outlines how the requirements apply to support firms in understanding their obligations under the CPC and the ADMA. • Proportionality – it was clarified that while all consumers should be afforded the same level of protection and all firms have the same responsi- bility to secure customers’ interests, not all firms are expected to meet their obligations in the same way, noting that: (a) firms should focus on the customer outcomes that may result from their actions, considering what a firm can know, or can reasonably be expected to know, at a relevant time; and (b) securing customers’ interests does not im- pose an open-ended duty that goes beyond the scope of the firm’s role and its ability to determine or influence customer outcomes, or protect customers from all potential harms. • Individual accountability framework – it was clari- fied that the concept of reasonable steps reflected in the Individual Accountability Framework (“IAF”) is intentionally not replicated in the Securing Customers’ Interests Standards for Business. The IAF provides for the concept of reasonable steps in respect of the conduct standards set out in primary legislation in the Central Bank Reform Act
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