The Financial Conduct Authority has refused RTC Management Solutions Ltd’s application to be authorised as it continues its crack down of claims management companies (CMCs).

The FCA has now issued a final notice refusing its application.

Regulatory responsibility for CMCs was transferred to the FCA in April 2019.

RTC Management Solutions applied to the regulatory for permission to conduct claims management regulated activities on 31 July 2019.

From that date CMC firms needed to apply for temporary registration with the authority. The firm was granted temporary registration on 1 April 2019.

However, in order to continue carrying on claims management activities, firms had to apply to the authority for full authorisation in a window between 1 April 2019 and 31 July 2019.

The FCA said it refused the application as it “cannot ensure that RTC Management Solutions Ltd will satisfy and continue to satisfy the threshold conditions set out in Schedule 6 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, in particular the Effective Supervision, Appropriate Resources and Suitability threshold conditions.”

The threshold conditions are the minimum standards that firms must meet in order to be authorised by the FCA.

RTC Management Solutions is one of several long-standing claims management companies that have seen applications rejected by the FCA in recent months.

The regulator refused permissions to Bradford-based Active Claims (UK) Ltd in September, which had been operating since 2006. 

The FCA has been cracking down on CMCs since becoming responsible for their regulation in 2019.

In November the FCA said it will cap fees for Claims Management Firms at £10,000 from 1 March. 

A fee of £10,000 can be charged where compensation of £50,000 or more has been won by a CMC.

Fees are also capped at lower compensation awards with a fee cap of £420 for compensation won of £1 to £1,499.

On an award of £10,000 to £24,999 a fee of up to £5,000 can be charged.

The maximum percentage fee that can be charged is 30%.

The new fee limits will apply for claims started on or after 1 March.