As financial landscapes continue to evolve, ensuring stability and security in later life has never been more important. That’s why it was a privilege to chair the panel at this year’s Later Life Lending Summit, where we brought together regulators, policymakers, and industry leaders to explore how we can better support our ageing population.
Under the theme ‘Overcoming Barriers: A Vision for Property Wealth and Later Life Lending,’ the Summit tackled the complex challenges preventing more integrated, resilient financial journeys in later life. We examined long-standing silos between mortgages, pensions, and investments, and the need for regulation to keep pace with older consumers’ increasingly diverse needs.
A standout moment was a discussion about the Equity Release Council’s Standards 2.0, a bold step forward for the sector. These new Standards are supported by a dedicated Consumer Charter, built around four values: Trusted, Transparent, Thorough, and Tailored. Together, these “4Ts” redefine what good looks like in later life lending.
Our new research showed how much this matters:
- 43% of consumers felt more confident when advice reflected the 4Ts
- 62% said they want more protection than regulation alone provides
- Just 4% said enhanced standards weren’t important
These findings clearly support going beyond the minimum, creating a framework that consumers can rely on.
It was brilliant to share the stage with fellow Standards Committee members Charlotte Allen and Paul Saroya, who have both been heavily involved in the development of Standards 2.0. Charlotte shared on the day, how focused she had been through the Standards work to ensure that 2.0 better articulated what best practice and good outcomes really meant in our sector. Paul emphasised how the later life sector was evolving, and how the Standards needed to evolve too. He expressed his belief that the 4Ts did just that, as a clear example of how consumers can expect to be treated by our members. We were also joined by Mike Batty who shared how the Consumer Charter would bring confidence to the market.
We then looked ahead, to the forthcoming FCA discussion paper, which will be another pivotal moment. It will allow industry and regulators to take joint steps toward a more integrated financial landscape and foster innovation that puts older consumers first. The FCA’s Laura Rodrigues reenforced the FCA’s commitment to working with the sector to remove silos and barriers to growth. She explained the discussion paper would be a great opportunity to have that open conversation with the FCA.
As our population ages, property wealth will play a growing role in later life financial wellbeing. Let’s continue building a system that works, joined-up, forward-looking, and centred on the people it serves.
