Christopher Zinn, the former head of communications and campaigns for consumer group CHOICE, says opposition to proposed amendments to the Future of Financial Advice (FoFA) reforms is growing as consumers realise what the changes really mean.
Zinn has launched a “Save Our FoFA“ campaign, designed to harness consumer support to oppose the planned amendments. He says backing for the campaign is gathering pace, but has not placed a number on how many individuals or groups must be enlisted for it to be deemed a “success”.
“This is a slow burn,” Zinn says.
“I was involved when I was at CHOICE in some of the FoFA debate and negotitations. I think that when FoFA was passed last year that we probably failed to tell the public what had been achieved on their behalf. So I do not think they know what the potential cost to them is of the dilution of the FoFA provisions.
“The wealth management industry has done a superb job in lobbying to get their own way, because they understand what the impact of FoFA is on them. Consumers do not understand the impact of FoFA on them.”
Zinn says that while FoFA “may be disallowed by regulation in the next couple of weeks, this is an issue that is going to bubble on and on”.
He says much of the debate about the final form of the FoFA legislation was technical, was subject to “11th-hour horse trading” and was conducted at a level that many consumers simply could not engage with or could not fully understand.
The aim of the Save Our FoFA campaign will be get the word out to consumers “about what is at stake, and to reframe the debate towards those issues that they can understand”.
Zinn says that “FoFA was passed less than a year ago and…to emasculate the legislation before it had a chance to operate is throwing away a very serious opportunity” to improve consumer protection in dealings with financial planners and financial institutions.
