FCA research finds that 56% of younger investors trust AI tools, while four in five less-experienced investors have used them for investment-related help. Yet the regulator found material misunderstanding: 44% believe AI-generated financial information is regulated, and 32% believe they could receive FSCS or Financial Ombudsman protection if AI guidance went wrong.
The message is directly relevant to mortgage and protection firms using generative AI. General-purpose chatbots are not regulated financial advice, and firms should maintain clear human oversight, source verification, record-keeping and appropriate disclosures. AI can support research, document triage, CRM segmentation and drafting, but it should not replace a suitability assessment, affordability judgement or regulated recommendation.