Almost one in ten (7%) of the advisers surveyed by M&G Wealth said they were very concerned.

The sweeping new Consumer Duty rules are due to be published on 31 July, with firms needing to comply by April 2023. The new rules will require firms to do more to protect consumers from harm and bad financial decisions. Firms will be required to do everything possible to avoid "consumer harm" at every step of the customer relationship.

Over two thirds (68%) of advisers surveyed by M&G said they would wait to review potential changes to their suitability advice process, with a quarter (25%) saying they believed it was likely to result in little change at this stage.

Just 1% predicted it would mean a major review of their whole process and significant changes. This figure could ultimately be higher as a further 5% say they do not know what impact it will have.

In terms of the collection of management information to assess client outcomes, over half (55%) said they collect very little or that they collect some but with no consistent process, with 36% said they regularly collect and review client outcome data.

Vince Smith Hughes, director of specialist business support at M&G Wealth, said: “With the FCA not expected to publish the final Consumer Duty Rules and Guidance until 31 July, it’s unsurprising that many advisers are waiting to see the contents to understand what impact it will have on their suitability advice process.

“Its impact should not be underestimated. If you take the FCA estimate of cost to the industry a guide, the total one-off direct costs for firms to comply is expected to be in the range of £688.6m to £2.4bn - and the ongoing annual direct costs to be in the range of £74.0m to £176.2m. That’s an average of between approx. £13,500 to £47,000 per firm as a one-off and around £1,450 to £3,450 annually, appreciating, of course, some firms will pay much more than others.”

M&G Wealth conducted a poll of over 200 advisers during a webinar on 5 May.