Category: Compliance & AML · Reviewed by Tim Roche, Director · PI & Commercial · Last reviewed June 2026
The published decision document that records the outcome of an FCA enforcement action — confirming the regulatory action taken, the underlying findings, the penalty and the reasoning.
A Final Notice is the public document that records the conclusion of an FCA enforcement matter. It is issued at the end of the decision-making process — after the warning notice and decision notice stages — and is the document on which the FCA publishes the action. Final Notices appear on the FCA’s website and form the bulk of the publicly available enforcement record.
FSMA section 390 (Final Notices). Procedural framework in FCA Handbook, DEPP 2 and DEPP 3.
A Final Notice is issued when (a) the subject of action does not refer the matter to the Upper Tribunal, or (b) the Tribunal has issued its decision. The notice sets out the facts, the regulatory rules breached, the seriousness assessment, any mitigation, the penalty (with the DEPP 6 five-step calculation), any other relief (e.g. prohibition order, suspension, public censure) and the reasoning. The notice is published. Settlement Final Notices include the stage discount applied.
A Statutory Notice of Discontinuance is issued where the FCA decides not to proceed after the warning notice stage; this is not the same as a Final Notice. A Supervisory Notice is issued where the action is by way of restriction or variation rather than disciplinary penalty.
An FCA Final Notice against an insurance broker for breach of Consumer Duty fair-value rules would set out the chronology, the customer harm identified, the firm’s response, the penalty under DEPP 6, any prohibition orders against individuals, and the published reasoning. The notice typically also includes information about the firm’s settlement and the stage discount applied.
Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, sections 390, 391. FCA Handbook, DEPP 2 and DEPP 3.
By Matt Bartlett, Director, on 2026-06-11.
This entry is part of the Apex Insurance Wiki. Last reviewed by Matt Bartlett on 2026-06-11. Apex Insurance Brokers Limited, FCA FRN 724952, Companies House 07014570. Not regulated advice — consult your broker on your specific position.
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