Anyone who has tried to get in touch with FASEA will share my frustration. Under the ‘Contact Us’ link of FASEA’s website, visitors are greeted with one of those terrible online forms to fill in. Like booking a hotel: name, phone, email, message. Finally, you need to tick ‘I’m not a robot’ – the irony of which is not lost on me.
Searching everywhere for a phone number, an office address, any sign of life at all is a futile exercise.
I filled out the form, leaving the following message before confirming I am not a robot:
I’m looking for confirmation and a few additional figures following the release of FASEA’s annual report. The annual report for 2017-2018 states that FASEA receives $3.9 million in annual funding under a contract that expires in 2021. I understand most of this funding is from the major banks and AMP. Could I please get a breakdown of where this funding comes from for my records?
I have it on good authority that FASEA receives almost $4 million a year from the big four banks and AMP. FASEA did not respond to my request for confirmation of this. They haven’t explained where the $4 million comes from. Which is not surprising. They don’t have a telephone number or office address. Do they actually exist?
I hope they have the internet and my messages aren’t being sent into a black hole. I fear they might be. Next time I’ll include a message that I wish to give them money and see if they hit me back. Usually works.
Luckily, I’m not the only one befuddled by this completely inaccessible organisation.
In a 25 October letter to opposition leader Tanya Plibersek, financial advisers Philippa Hunt, Pamela Anderson and Halle Yilmaz wrote that FASEA’s evolution has been “extraordinarily frustrating” for stakeholders.
“The FASEA board was established in early April 2017. FASEA’s inaugural CEO joined six months later, but resigned in March 2018,” they said.
“Board member and Griffith University academic Dr Mark Brimble (one of the largest providers of commercial education product in the marketplace that FASEA intends to standardise) has been acting as CEO ever since.
“We still await the appointment of an independent new CEO, who was meant to start in August but to our knowledge has still not started. FASEA has no telephone number or physical address listed with Telstra.”
Given that the faceless FASEA is receiving close to $4 million a year, presumably from the big banks and AMP as a means of controlling the advice industry under the guise of ‘education’, they should shell out a few bob for a phone.
Then I could call them and find out exactly what they do and who pays them. Until then, I’ll keep filling out the online form and confirming I’m still not a robot.
WOEFUL. No phone number for assistance
Maybe they’re aligned with the Men In Black? You know, a secret organisation that you can’t contact but supposedly knows all, aims to keep the alien life-forms called ‘Financial Planners’ in check and most similarly believe that despite our experience or years in the industry, we have all ‘please look into the flash’ and forgotten it all…
I have left a number of messages for FASEA, concern my degree and Post Graduate qualification. Having completed by degree in the late 70’s there has been so mush structural change that of course my degree, no longer exists. However, my post-grad is even worst. Kaplan has loss all the old transcripts of anyone undertaking the SIA Post Grad courses before 2000 and cannot provide them. So have the qualification and working for nearly 25 years as an expert witness. Making numerous changes to the law whilst on contracts with ASIC, does not seem to count for this organisation, as they wont even respond. Maybe a law suit will change their minds, after all they are not a government body.
please commence litigation
Please contact Terry McMaster. He is now retired. looking for trouble and people to sue.
please contact him.
if you contact him, you will get both:
a. lawyerly advice from terry m
b. psychological counselling from his son Adrian (a failed psychologist)
Hi Nomura
We’d like to discuss your situation in more detail. Please get in touch with us so we can undertake a review of your academic records.
Interesting article. The full disclosure tenant of FARCEA on display for all to see. FARCEA, politicians, life company execs et al need little qualifications to do their jobs. They are the ones presiding over advisers and their futures. Duplicity at its best. Staggering hubris. The lack of support from the life companies for stopping the 2 year clawback AND not championing a separate risk qualification/exam regime was the last straw for me. Lost all faith in these parasites now. I used to absolutely LOVE this job and MY industry. Neither now sadly. . .
the life companies arent the one’s regulating this industry, this is all driven from government given it’s view that the industry cant adequately regulate itself….
The Big Banks and Life Companies totally self regulate – look at the requests / offers from ASIC if they are happy to pay the piddly fines they are given, are they happy with the wording of the public notification of the law breaking or do they want to re word it, etc, etc.
That my friend is self regulation.
A government department funded by the big 5 bad guys, conflicted, far from independent and why has the RC or government minister or Adelle Furgeson not shown it for what it is. The cause of all this BS is funding/controlling the outcomes.
maybe the reason no one has ‘shown it for what it is’ is that it’s not what you say it is….
Level 21, 133 Castlereagh Street, Sydney NSW 2000 – seriously, how hard is it to track down an address? It’s basic research, people.
Think you missed the point. Why should people have to undertake “research” to find their address…most sensible organisations have their address on their website. Oops…sorry…we’re talking about FASEA!
Did you just use “sensible” in the same sentance as “FASEA”?
Phone number please ?
OK so the address listed above is for Clarence Serviced Offices Sydney – and when you call Clarence they will not confirm if FASEA use their offices? They then provided a phone contact number for
FASEA = 02 8076 6040. But Clarence will not confirm if this phone number is located in their offices?
And when you call FASEA of course you can’t speak to anyone but get a voice message.
Please ALL call FASEA, request a meeting, request information about the opaque processes and why they have no contact details or proper contact points available for consultation.
That approach alone along with the whole dam process so far stinks of a complete stitch up.
How many other Government Bodies are able to have no address or phone number listed ?
Surely a Government body has rules to make it visible and accountable ?
Is FASEA’s completely opaque process, location and lack of phone contact even legal ?
FASEA are accountable to government, I’m sure they know how to contact them.
If you contrast FASEA to the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) which has a similar function for tax agents, their operating budget last year was $17M as a ‘mature’ organisation that has been operating for approx 9 yrs and has 130 staff. FASEA probably has less than 15 people (incl the board) at this stage and is just over a year old.
If you have issues call your local member, but be prepared to have to tell them what FASEA is…..
FASEA are a total joke , They have been swimming around for over 12 months and have still not come out with anything for the Industry.
Does Mr Mitchell think that because the Big 5 are funding this, I assume as a proxy for the broader financial planning industry, that they are getting a say on the outcomes from FASEA? What is the issue, apart from having another whack at these guys? Why dont you write to the parliamentarian responsible for the oversight of FASEA? After all it’s a government owned corporation….or doesnt that suit the agenda of throwing stones??
I trust FASEA’s new chief, Stephen Glenfield, will give planners at the FPA Congress in Sydney ample time for ‘Q & A’ ? (…something Deen Sanders wasn’t keen on!)
You still have trust? lol
It’s all a huge joke at the industries expense !!!!!!!!!!!!
A phone number would be nice though 🙂
consultation@fasea.gov.au
media@fasea.gov.au
mark.brimble@fasea.gov.au
mark’s email appears on:
https://www.fsc.org.au/_entity/annotation/0f118ad3-18b7-e811-815f-480fcff12ac1
I assume the rest of the kill squad have the same email address convention.
‘kill squad’…..drama queen!
“Kill squad” or “cull squad”? Only the slow and those unable/unwilling to adapt will get caught…
Or those who can’t afford to pay the enormous cost, or those who can’t commit to the hundreds of hours required to study, or those who are sick of working in a profession where we are constantly undermined and defamed by our regulator, or those who are sick of the constant risk of being banned for a minor difference of opinion or simple mistake, or those who are stuck with a licensee they can’t get away from due to unfair contracts, or those who aren’t rewarded adequately for the long hours we work, or those who are tired of the constant barrage of negativity in the press, or those who simply don’t enjoy this profession anymore due to a combination of the above. I’m a young adviser with a Masters in FP and I am considering getting out. So don’t assume it is only a handful of old bastards thinking of retiring There are huge numbers of us who are sick to death of this nonsense.
you have a choice anonymous, no one is forcing you to stay…..
I am similar to you. Early 30’s and thinking this Industry is all BS.