unit 1.8 - consumer protection Flashcards
capital
money of other assets owned by an individual or business. In the cases of financial services providers, it refers to the funds provided by the shareholder, not deposits from customers.
chancellor of the exchequer
the British cabinet minister responsible for financial and economic matters and in charge of the treasury.
citizens advice
charity providing fee, independent, confidential and impartial advice on citizens and consumers rights and responsibilities.
competition and markets authority
independent, non-ministerial government department, which works to promote competition between providers so that customers benefit.
consumer credit
another term used for borrowing. ‘raking credit’ or ‘buying credit’ refers to borrowing.
credit crunch
reduction in the availability of loans or a tightening of the conditions needed to obtain one. Global financial crisis of 2007-08 began when financial institutions became reluctant to lend funs to one another.
credit union
mutual organisation (owned by members) THAT OFFERS A RANGE OF FINANCIAL PRODUCTS mMEBERS OF A CREDIT UNUION MUST SHARE A COMMON BOND, (ALL WORK FOR THE SAME EMPLOYER)
current account
bank or building society accounts where people can store their money in the form of electronic balances and withdraw it to make payments.
debit card
card that can be used to withdraw cash, make face to face transactions and to make payments online or over the phone.
deposit
sum of money placed by a customer with a financial services provider
financial conduct authority (FCA)
one of the 2 main regulators of financial services in the UK. Its role includes protecting consumers, keeping the industry stable, and promoting healthy competition between financial service providers.
Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS)
independent body set up by parliament that settles customer complaints about providers at no change to customers.
Financial policy committee (FPC)
part of the Bank of England that monitors and responds to risk posed to the entire financial services market, Focus on the whole market makes it a macro-prudential authority.
Financial services compensation scheme (FSCS)
compensation scheme that pays compensation to account holders up to a certain amount per provider if the provider goes into default.
Independent commissions on banking
committee formed in June 2010, as a response to the global financial crisis. It considered reforms to the UK banking sector to promote both financial stability and competition
independant financial adviser (IFA)
professional who makes financial recommendations to clients, based on available products across a wide range of providers
investment banks
banks that are involved in trading financial assets such as shares, underwriting issues of shares by other institutions and advising on mergers and acquisitions. Investment banks provide services such as current accounts ect.
liquidity
assets that a business holds in the form of cash, that can be used to meet immediate demands for a payment.
money advice service (replaced by moneyhelper)
consumer information service set up by the government to help people make informed financial decisions
money and pensions service (MaPS)
brings together financial guidance services and content on money and pensions through MoneyHelper.
money laundering
process of making ‘dirty’ money (criminal activities) ‘clean’.
mortgage
loan taken out to pay for a property, usually over a long period.
Office of Fair Trading (OFT)
government department that monitored how businesses compete with each other, It was abolished in April 2014 and its responsibilities shared between the FCA and the CMA
overdraft
facility that allows an account holder to withdraw more money than they actuallyy have in their account. Authorised is agreed with the bank in advance within certain limits. Unauthorised may not be authorised.
payday loans
loan designed to be taken out for only a very short period, which charged a very high APR.
