356(1) Investment firms, shall determine whether that client has the necessary experience and knowledge in order to understand the risks involved in relation to the product or investment service offered or demanded when assessing whether an investment service as referred to in [COBS 10A.1.1R] is appropriate for a client.

An investment firm shall be entitled to assume that a professional client has the necessary experience and knowledge in order to understand the risks involved in relation to those particular investment services or transactions, or types of transaction or product, for which the client is classified as a professional client.

[Note: article 56(1) of the MiFID Org Regulation]

315 Without prejudice to the fact that, in accordance with [COBS 9A.2.3AR, COBS 9A.3.2R and COBS 9A.3.2AR], any contract proposed shall be consistent with the customer's demands and needs, insurance intermediaries or insurance undertakings shall determine whether the customer has the necessary knowledge and experience in order to understand the risks involved in relation to the service or product proposed or demanded when assessing whether an insurance service or product distributed in accordance with [COBS 10A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.2R] is appropriate for the customer.

[Note: article 15 of the IDD Regulation]

355(1) Investment firms shall ensure that the information regarding a client's or potential client’s knowledge and experience in the investment field includes the following, to the extent appropriate to the nature of the client, the nature and extent of the service to be provided and the type of product or transaction envisaged, including their complexity and the risks involved:

1. (a) the types of service, transaction and financial instrument with which the client is familiar;

2. (b) the nature, volume, and frequency of the client’s transactions in financial instruments and the period over which they have been carried out;

3. (c) the level of education, and profession or relevant former profession of the client or potential client.

[Note: article 55(1) of the MiFID Org Regulation]

317(1) For the purposes of [COBS 9A.2.1R, COBS 9A.2.16R, COBS 10A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.2R], the necessary information to be obtained by insurance intermediaries and insurance undertakings with regard to the customer’s or potential customer’s knowledge and experience in the relevant investment field shall include, where relevant, the following, to the extent appropriate to the nature of the customer, and the nature and type of product or service offered or demanded, including their complexity and the risks involved:

1. (a) the types of service, transaction, insurance-based investment product or financial instrument with which the customer or potential customer is familiar;

2. (b) the nature, number, value and frequency of the customer’s or potential customer's transactions in insurance-based investment products or financial instruments and the period over which they have been carried out;

3. (c) the level of education, and profession or relevant former profession of the customer or potential customer.

17(3) Where information required for the purposes of [COBS 9A.2.1R, COBS 9A.2.16R, COBS 10A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.2R] has already been obtained pursuant to [COBS 9A.2.3AR, COBS 9A.3.2R and COBS 9A.3.2AR], insurance intermediaries and insurance undertakings shall not request it anew from the customer.

[Note: article 17(1) and (3) of the IDD Regulation]

355(2) An investment firm shall not discourage a client or potential client from providing information required for the purposes of [COBS 9A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.1R].

[Note: article 55(2) of the MiFID Org Regulation]

317(2) The insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking shall not discourage a customer or potential customer from providing information required for the purposes of [COBS 9A.2.1R, COBS 9A.2.16R, COBS 10A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.2R].

[Note: article 17(2) of the IDD Regulation]

355(3) An investment firm shall be entitled to rely on the information provided by its clients or potential clients unless it is aware or ought to be aware that the information is manifestly out of date, inaccurate or incomplete.

[Note: article 55(3) of the MiFID Org Regulation]

317(4) The insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking shall be entitled to rely on the information provided by its customers or potential customers unless it is aware or ought to be aware that the information is manifestly out of date, inaccurate or incomplete.

[Note: article 17(4) of the IDD Regulation]

457 A financial instrument which is not explicitly specified in [COBS 10A.4.1R(2)] shall be considered as non-complex for the purposes of paragraph (2)(f) of that rule if it satisfies the following criteria:

1. (a) it does not fall within Article 2(1)(24)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 or paragraphs 4 to 11 of Part 1 of Schedule 2 to the Regulated Activities Order;

2. (b) there are frequent opportunities to dispose of, redeem, or otherwise realise that instrument at prices that are publicly available to market participants and that are either market prices or prices made available, or validated, by valuation systems independent of the issuer;

3. (c) it does not involve any actual or potential liability for the client that exceeds the cost of acquiring the instrument;

4. (d) it does not incorporate a clause, condition or trigger that could fundamentally alter the nature or risk of the investment or pay out profile, such as investments that incorporate a right to convert the instrument into a different investment;

5. (e) it does not include any explicit or implicit exit charges that have the effect of making the investment illiquid even though there are technically frequent opportunities to dispose of, redeem or otherwise realise it;

6. (f) adequately comprehensive information on its characteristics is publicly available and is likely to be readily understood so as to enable the average retail client to make an informed judgment as to whether to enter into a transaction in that instrument.

[Note: article 57 of the MiFID Org Regulation]

416 An insurance-based investment product shall be considered as non-complex for the purposes of [COBS 10A.4.1R] where it satisfies all of the following criteria:

1. (a) it includes a contractually guaranteed minimum maturity value which is at least the amount paid by the customer after deduction of legitimate costs;

2. (b) it does not incorporate a clause, condition or trigger that allows the insurance undertaking to materially alter the nature, risk, or pay-out profile of the insurance-based investment product;

3. (c) it provides options to surrender or otherwise realise the insurance-based investment product at a value that is available to the customer;

4. (d) it does not include any explicit or implicit charges which have the effect that, even though there are technically options to surrender or otherwise realise the insurance-based investment product, doing so may cause unreasonable detriment to the customer because the charges are disproportionate to the cost to the insurance undertaking;

5. (e) it does not in any other way incorporate a structure which makes it difficult for the customer to understand the risks involved.

[Note: article 16 of the IDD Regulation]

356(2) Investment firms shall maintain records of the appropriateness assessments undertaken which shall include the following:

1. (a) the result of the appropriateness assessment;

2. (b) any warning given to the client where the investment service or product purchase was assessed as potentially inappropriate for the client, whether the client asked to proceed with the transaction despite the warning and, where applicable, whether the firm accepted the client’s request to proceed with the transaction;

3. (c) any warning given to the client where the client did not provide sufficient information to enable the firm to undertake an appropriateness assessment, whether the client asked to proceed with the transaction despite this warning and, where applicable, whether the firm accepted the client’s request to proceed with the transaction.

[Note: article 56(2) of the MiFID Org Regulation]

319(1) Without prejudice to the application of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council, insurance intermediaries and insurance undertakings shall maintain records of the assessment of suitability or appropriateness undertaken in accordance with [COBS 9A.2.1R, COBS 9A.2.16R, COBS 10A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.2R]. The records shall include the information obtained from the customer and any documents agreed with the customer, including documents that set out the rights of the parties and the other terms on which the insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking will provide services to the customer. Such records shall be retained for at least the duration of the relationship between the insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking and the customer.

19(3) In the case of an assessment of appropriateness undertaken in accordance with [COBS 10A.2.1R and COBS 10A.2.2R], the record shall further include the following:

1. (a) the result of the appropriateness assessment;

2. (b) any warning given to the customer where the insurance-based investment product was assessed as potentially inappropriate for the customer, whether the customer asked to proceed with concluding the contract despite the warning and, where applicable, whether the insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking accepted the customer's request to proceed with concluding the contract;

3. (c) any warning given to the customer where the customer did not provide sufficient information to enable the insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking to assess the appropriateness of the insurance-based investment product, whether the customer asked to proceed with concluding the contract despite the warning and, where applicable, whether the insurance intermediary or insurance undertaking accepted the customer's request to proceed with concluding the contract.

[Note: article 19(1) and (3) of the IDD Regulation]