Biba 2025: Trudgill welcomes FCA decision to simplify rules in keynote

Biba chief executive Graeme Trudgill has welcomed today’s (14 May 2025) launch of a new FCA consultation on how the rules that govern the insurance sector can be simplified. 

During his opening keynote speech for the Biba conference this morning, Trudgill explained: ”Biba’s constructive work with the FCA is now set to achieve better outcomes for members and culminates in the launch of a brand new FCA consultation paper.” 

In the consultation paper, which was released this morning, the FCA outlined plans to ditch what it claimed were “outdated or duplicated requirements from its insurance rulebook”.

This included giving firms more flexibility to appoint a lead insurer to comply with its rules, in instances where more than one party is involved in designing products, eliminating duplicated annual reporting and employer’s liability notification requirements and removing the specified minimum hours for training and development required for insurance employees. 

Biba had called for a number of these changes to be made in its 2025 manifesto, which was released at a Parliamentary reception in January.

In his keynote at the Biba conference, Trudgill explained how Biba’s collaborative relationship with the regulator had influenced these decisions. 

He commented: “We’ve rolled up our sleeves, got around the table with the FCA and our members and worked closely and constructively together.

“We made detailed submissions to the FCA on a number of key issues, including reducing the scope of the Consumer Duty, speeding up authorisation, streamlining reporting and which FCA rules we want to clear out of the garage and retire.” 

Working relationship 

Trudgill also explained how Biba had been joined by the FCA on its national roadshow events in 2024, with the regulator set to repeat the exercise in Autumn 2025. 

Additionally, Trudgill was invited to speak to the regulator’s insurance team in its Stratford headquarters.

He branded the release of the new consultation as “like an early Christmas present”, adding that it would “help towards addressing so many of our key member manifesto points” on the issue of regulation. 

The FCA, Trudgill said, have also confirmed to prime minister Kier Starmer that it was committed to reducing the regulatory burden on the sectors it sets rules for.

He added: ”I know our members will look forward to this new era of regulation.”