FSA hits back at Prudential claims over policies

The FSA has hit back at claims by UK insurer Prudential in a leaked email that its policies are “ludicrous” and “horrendous”.

The email, which was leaked to the Sunday Telegraph and went out to 2,000 of the firm’s staff, was written by Prudential’s UK business deputy chief executive Barry O’Dwyer on 9 March, raising concerns over the alleged “personal prejudices” of some key individuals that influenced FSA policy.

“When consulting on the new rules they floated some ideas that would have been horrendous for customers and so we had to fight a rearguard action to make sure they didn’t implement some of their more ludicrous suggestions,” he wrote.

O’Dwyer also wrote about concerns over the potential impact of Scottish independence on Britain’s insurers.

But the FSA responded by saying it was just the middleman between government, Europe and industry.

It said it would take on board a series of damaging remarks made by Prudential, but added the complaints should be directed at Brussels and Westminster instead.

An FSA spokesman said: “Many of the regulations that come in are not FSA regulations but European.

“The FSA happens to be the body that implements it.”