The FCA is to improve its handling of regulatory returns after the Complaints Commissioner upheld a complaint against the watchdog.

The FCA plans changes to its Gabriel returns submission handling to include a new reminder system when partially completed returns to the FCA are saved but not submitted.

The Complaints Commissioner upheld a complaint from a regulated firm which was fined for late submission of a return even though the return had been saved, although not formally submitted.

The Complaints Commissioner, the official body handling complaints against the FCA, has recommended the body improve its processes so that attestations that are saved by not submitted are flagged up so they can be completed in good time.

In the case upheld, the FCA has agreed to waive its ‘late notification’ fee after the saved return was not formally submitted.

The so-called 'save and exit' problem occurs when regulated firms are still working on returns which have yet to be submitted. Firms submitting returns late are at risk of fines.

The issue resolved around regulated firms saving a partially completed return or attestation which was then not completed or formally submitted. Because of this the document was not marked as finished by the FCA but no clear warning was given the regulated firm making the submission.

In the Complaints Commissioner’s Report (202300548), the Commissioner says the FCA has accepted it should waive the late notification fee and it has done this.

In the Commissioner’s Final Report, the Commissioner told the complainant: “I also recommended that, in addition to the Data and Strategy & Services team passing on your suggestion to the relevant teams to have a reminder system put into place to send an email when a firm’s attestation is left partially completed, that the FCA must also improve the Connect system to implement the flag system that it used on its Gabriel system to alert users when data had only been saved and not submitted”.

In its Final Report the Commissioner added: “... I would ask that the FCA keep me updated every couple of months on the development and deployment of this new system and provides details of what steps have been taken to avoid the ‘save and exit’ scenario being repeated on the new platform.”

The FCA said in a statement: “We accept the Commissioner’s recommendation in principle and propose to incorporate the changes into development into a new system.

“We accept the Commissioner’s recommendation and will keep the Commissioner updated every six months on the development and deployment of the new system.”