Caring responsibilities are one of the most common life events experienced by vulnerable financial consumers, MorganAsh has found.

The support services provider’s latest vulnerable customer data revealed that the most frequently reported life events among vulnerable customers are bereavement, divorce and separation, and caring responsibilities, including those for elderly parents and for children.

The firm analysed data from multiple companies across the financial services sector, including credit, debt, mortgage and financial advice, insurance and building societies.

MorganAsh’s latest findings come after the FCA Financial Lives survey revealed that 49% of adults are dealing with one or more characteristic of vulnerability.

The same survey found that around one in 10 adults (4.8 million) are in poor health, with 58% of this group experiencing difficulty when interacting with providers or managing their finances.

Managing director at MorganAsh, Andrew Gething, said: "When considering how to manage customer vulnerability, conversation often focuses on visible conditions such as blindless, financial distress or consumer understanding. Life events such as divorce or separation and bereavement were always likely to be at the top, but we did not expect to find carer issues and potential financial coercion so high.

"With clear challenges around financial resilience and poor health, particularly for unpaid carers, we need to be building a complete picture around all our clients to have the best chance of mitigating the difficulties they face and understanding the outcomes for key groups, such as carers. We cannot do this with robust data, which requires consistent assessment and the right processes and technology."

Chairman at MorganAsh, Johnny Timpson, added: "With the right assessment discovering the right information, financial services firms can provide the right recommendations and support, as well intervene early to determine if needs have changed or anything is different.

"There’s no question that being a carer is a major life event that is hugely common – it can come at any time of life and be for extended periods. We need to be aware of this – and understand the implications of this – to ensure that our unsung heroes receive the service and support they need."

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