Advisers are typically very good at doing their 35 hours of continuing professional development (CPD) or more but they are struggling to stay on top of recording it, according to the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII).
At a CII roadshow yesterday, corporate development manager Jim Baylis reminded advisers that they need to record a minimum of 35 hours of CPD a year in order to maintain their trading licence, the Statement of Professional Standing (SPS).
The regulator performs checks on about 10% of submitted CPDs every year and advisers' biggest issue was to understand how the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) wanted the information presented, he said.
He said: "I bet you do 36 hours a year but don't record it very well. The easiest way to do your CPD is three hours a month...but there is no 'must do' way for anyone."
He added: "The FCA is not trying to catch you out with CPD. All they want you to do is stay relevant for the benefit of your clients."
Baylis said records could be kept in any format as long as "some simple evidence can be reported if and when asked for".
He also said it was important to record how various activities benefitted the development of the individual, rather than just list a number of activities and dates.
Baylis said the CII has seen a marked uptick in engagement from advisers since the CPD became a compulsory element of SPS following the Retail Distribution Review.
The CII has issued a total of 21,500 individual SPSs.
