FCA Consumer Duty evidence for subscription ecommerce

What to take away

The four Consumer Duty outcomes and how London firms evidence them

Consumer Duty rests on four outcomes. Products and services must be designed for a target market. Price and value must be reasonable. Consumer understanding means communications are clear. Consumer support must be accessible when things go wrong. London subscription brands selling credit-linked plans face extra scrutiny because a credit agreement sits alongside the subscription.

Evidence starts with the customer path. Map every touchpoint from sign-up to cancellation. Record what the customer sees, when they see it, and how they confirm. For Consumer Duty evidence records, keep dated screenshots, call recordings and email trails. The FCA expects firms to test understanding, not assume it.

For price and value, compare what the subscriber pays against what they receive. London fintech subscriptions often bundle software, insurance or credit. Show the value split. If the credit element carries interest, demonstrate that the total cost is clear before purchase. The FCA subscription oversight approach looks for firms that can prove fair value with data.

Consumer understanding is where many London brands fail. Terms buried in a PDF do not count. Use plain English at the point of sale. Test comprehension with a sample of customers. Keep the results.

For broader data handling duties, see our guide to subscription commerce data protection. It covers how to store consent records without breaching UK GDPR.

CONC rules on recurring payments and credit-linked subscriptions

The FCA's Consumer Credit sourcebook, CONC, sets rules for recurring payments when credit is involved. A credit-linked subscription is one where the subscriber pays for a service using credit, or where the subscription itself includes a credit facility. Buy now, pay later plans tied to a monthly box are a common London example.

Consumer Duty is set out in PRIN 2A. PRIN 2A.1 requires firms to act to deliver good outcomes for retail customers. PRIN 2A.2 sets cross-cutting rules on good faith, foreseeable harm and customer understanding. PRIN 2A.3 sets the four outcomes.

CONC 4 sets pre-contractual disclosure rules. CONC rules on recurring payments require clear disclosure before the first payment. The customer must know the amount, the frequency and how to stop it. Continuous payment authority, where you take card payments on a recurring basis, needs explicit consent. That consent must be easy to withdraw.

If your subscription includes credit, you must assess affordability. London firms selling credit-linked subscriptions to consumers need to check that repayments are sustainable. Keep the affordability assessment with the subscription record. If the customer falls behind, you must treat them fairly. That means pausing collections and offering support, not just adding fees.

CONC 7 covers arrears and forbearance. CONC 8 covers debt counselling and debt management if you refer customers for advice.

Cancellation must be as easy as sign-up. The FCA has criticised firms that make customers call a retention team to cancel. For credit-linked subscriptions, cancellation should also stop the credit agreement where the law allows. Document the process and train staff on it.

CONC also covers how you communicate changes. If you raise the price or change the credit terms, give notice. Show the old and new terms side by side. Keep proof of delivery. For a wider view of UK rules, see subscription commerce UK regulations.

Which London subscription brands fall inside the FCA perimeter

Not every London subscription brand is regulated by the FCA. You fall inside the perimeter if you offer credit, act as a credit broker, or provide insurance as part of the subscription. A pure software subscription paid by debit card is usually outside FCA credit rules but still inside consumer protection law.

The perimeter depends on activity, not job title. If you introduce customers to a lender and earn commission, you may need permission. If you arrange credit yourself, you almost certainly do. London fintech subscriptions that bundle lending with a monthly fee need to check their permissions carefully.

The Competition and Markets Authority is the UK competition and consumer authority, and it can act on subscription traps that harm consumers. Its remit covers unfair terms and misleading practices across the UK, including London. Read the Competition and Markets Authority - GOV.UK page for its role.

For your evidence pack, keep dated records showing your terms are fair and your cancellation path is clear.

Consumer protection guidance for businesses - GOV.UK sets out how the CMA enforces rules against unfair subscription conduct. That guidance matters if your cancellation flow hides behind layers of screens or if you keep charging after a customer cancels. Use it to test your own process and keep the test results in your evidence pack.

Trading standards teams in London boroughs also enforce consumer law. They can act on complaints about misleading pricing or hard-to-cancel contracts. Keep dated evidence that your pricing and terms are accurate. The Advertising Standards Authority can also rule on subscription advertising claims. Keep copies of your ads and the evidence behind any claim.

If you are unsure, document your reasoning. A written perimeter assessment, reviewed annually, shows the FCA you have considered your status. For common pitfalls, see subscription commerce risk scenarios.

Records and management information the FCA expects to see

Consumer duty management information is the evidence the FCA asks for during supervision. It is a set of metrics you track over time. London firms should be able to show trends, not just snapshots.

Firms in scope must assess, at least annually, whether they are delivering good outcomes for retail customers and prepare a report for the board or equivalent governing body to review and approve. Record its conclusions and agreed actions, and retain the report with supporting management information.

Start with complaints data. Record the number of complaints, their causes, and how long they took to resolve. Set a target of 8 weeks for complaint resolution. Break them down by product and by customer group. If a particular credit-linked subscription generates most complaints, explain what you changed.

Next, track cancellations. How many customers cancel, and how? If most cancellations happen after a phone call, that is a warning sign. Measure the time from request to confirmation. Set a target of confirmation within 24 hours.

Record payment failures and retries. High failure rates can indicate affordability problems. If you retry a failed payment, log how many times and whether you contacted the customer first. The FCA expects forbearance, not aggressive collection.

Keep evidence of customer understanding tests. If you tested a new sign-up flow, keep the results and the changes you made. Show that you act on what you learn. The FCA subscription oversight team looks for a feedback loop.

Keep every record dated, versioned and retrievable. Use a naming convention that includes the date and version number. Store records in a system that lets you find them within minutes, not days.

For a framework on setting metrics your board can defend, read measurement rules your board can audit. It explains how to turn raw data into board-level assurance.

Working with payment partners without losing the audit trail

Most London subscription brands rely on payment partners for card payments, Direct Debit or open banking. Each partner adds a layer between you and the customer. You still own the compliance outcome.

Start with due diligence. Check every payment partner's regulatory status. Use the FCA Financial Services Register to verify relevant FCA permissions, and Companies House to confirm the entity. Ask for their FCA permissions if they handle credit. Keep the evidence in your supplier file.

Contract terms matter. Your agreement should give you access to transaction data and audit rights. It should also set service levels for dispute handling. If a partner cannot provide an audit trail, that is a risk.

Direct Debit has its own rules. Bacs Payment Schemes Limited sets the scheme rules and the Direct Debit Guarantee. You must give advance notice of collection amounts and dates. If you use a bureau, confirm who holds the indemnity. Keep the audit trail for every collection.

For card payments, the Payment Systems Regulator oversees the schemes. Authorised push payment rules may apply if you use bank transfers. Make sure your payment partner follows them.

Protect subscriber payment data. The ICO's Security, including cyber security | ICO guidance explains how to keep payment records safe. Encryption, access controls and retention limits are basics. If you share data with a partner, have a written agreement.

Legislation and regulation - GOV.UK provides a starting point for the laws that apply to your business. Use it to check that your contracts and records meet current requirements.

A London evidence pack checklist for recurring payment oversight

Use this checklist to assemble your evidence pack. Review it quarterly and before any FCA interaction.

Then test the pack with a worked example. A London fintech subscription offers a monthly software plan with an optional credit facility. In January, complaints about unexpected interest charges rise. You pull the complaint log and find that the credit terms were shown only after sign-up.

You change the flow to show them before payment details are entered. You retest understanding with ten customers. You record the results and update the price and value assessment. You share the change with your payment partner so their scripts match. You keep the whole sequence in the evidence pack, dated and versioned.

That pack is what the FCA means by evidence. It shows you identified a problem, fixed it, and can prove the fix. Without it, you rely on memory and goodwill. Neither survives supervision.

Common questions