Ten CCR009 tips for asset finance brokers

The latest fun from the FCA for asset finance brokers is the new CCR009 consumer credit data form. It looks horrendous, stretching on for 65 pages, and the less said about the supporting data flow diagram the better. 

But fortunately, CCR009 really isn't that bad. Lots of the questions disappear if the right boxes are ticked in the early sections.

Here's ten tips, based on the questions I've been asked by brokers in the last week or two: 

1. The very first question asks about 'individuals'. No mention at all about businesses. But the FCA Glossary tells us that 'individuals' includes regulated partnerships and unincorporated businesses. 
   

2. The form is all about regulated business only. 'Total' means total regulated, not a real 'Total'. Getting this wrong could lead to a big increase in FCA fees. (I know you'll be wondering - this is in the FCA Handbook at SUP 16 Annex 38B, where it states that the data is for 'credit-related regulated activities'). 
   

3. Regulated business for brokers includes any broking of exempt agreements for regulated customers. 
   

4. Broking is broking even if it doesn't result in a deal. That's useful if you are ever in a situation of having no completed regulated agreements. 
   

5. Asset finance brokers arrange finance for the purchase of goods but don't supply goods and services to individuals (so it's likely to be an 'X' for Q109A and Q110A). May seem obvious, but I mention because a mistake on those leads to irrelevant questions still showing.
   

6. 'Consumer Hire' is any regulated agreement with no purchase option (what many refer to as 'lease'). 'Consumer credit' is any regulated agreement with a purchase option, including but not limited to Hire Purchase.
   

7. 'Owners' are funders providing Consumer Hire. 'Lenders' are funders providing Consumer Credit.
   

8. If you have Appointed Representatives, there's quite a lot of detail needed on their volumes. It's yet another reason - as I've covered before - why for smaller brokers, AR's arrangements are looking increasingly costly to maintain and it's often far better to use perfectly compliant alternatives (always happy to discuss this). Introducer Appointed Representatives remain fine to use where appropriate e.g. with suppliers - it's ARs that can be the problem. 
   

9. Debt adjusting for an asset finance broker is only about contacting a customer's lender to get a settlement figure on the customer's behalf, typically for a car. Debt counselling is only about giving advice to the customer on whether they should accept the settlement figure from their existing lender. So for 201A, it's likely to be an 'E', even though some of the other options also look possible. Another key question, as a mistake here will lead to irrelevant questions still showing.
   

10. 'Employees' include any brokers providing services to the firm, whether they are PAYE employees or not (relevant to the Staff section at the end).

Perhaps most importantly, there must be a degree of proportionality involved in completing the form. The FCA Handbook states that: 'The data should not give a misleading impression of the firm. A data item is likely to give a misleading impression if a firm omits a material item, includes an immaterial item or presents items in a manner which is misleading.' So the data needs to be generally right (not misleading) but especially in the first year of reporting using this form, I'm sure the FCA won't be expecting perfection, and well-informed estimates should be fine.