Supporting the Campaign to Transform Letters of Authority

Beyond Encryption is backing #LogYourLoAPain, a campaign with Criterion, Punter Southall, and The Pension Lab to measure the time and cost advisers spend on pen-and-ink Letters of Authority (LoAs).

The initiative calls on the financial services industry to rethink outdated LoA processes that slow down and complicate the advice process.

Together, the partners are building a data-driven case to replace these antiquated processes with modern, measurable alternatives.

What Is #LogYourLoAPain?

#LogYourLoAPain is a collaborative effort to highlight the time, effort, and cost of managing LoAs.

These documents are critical for advisers to gain the permissions they need to assist clients, but they remain a well-known operational pain point.

Recent research shows that LoAs frustrate advisers and create unnecessary delays for their clients.

Every adviser, planner, and paraplanner in the UK is invited to log their LoA volumes.

That data will help measure the true cost of these processes and build a stronger case for change.

Why LoA Delays Affect Adviser Outcomes

LoAs sit at the centre of adviser permissions, but slow processing can hold up the advice firms need to deliver.

Delays can affect advisers’ ability to meet the Financial Conduct Authority’s Consumer Duty.

Advisers need reliable information to deliver quality advice, and waiting weeks or even months for client data creates a clear service risk.

"Advisers cannot give timely, high-quality advice when core client data arrives weeks late.

Logging LoA volumes makes the scale of that delay visible to the whole industry."

Carole Howard, Head of Networks, Beyond Encryption (Mailock)

By logging your LoA data, you will receive a bespoke report on your firm’s annual costs and contribute to a wider industry initiative to modernise this essential process.

Driving Real Change

Scott Phillips, Founder of The Pension Lab, highlights the importance of this initiative:

"The #LogYourLoAPain initiative builds on the great research carried out by The Lang Cat by asking, ‘How many LoAs are advisers dealing with, and how much does it cost them?’

Encouraging everyone to log the volume of their estimated LoA submissions will shed light on the extent of the issue across the UK, enabling substantive prioritisation for its improvement."

Scott Phillips, Founder, The Pension Lab

Beyond Encryption is supporting the initiative alongside Criterion and Punter Southall so advisers and firms can see the tangible benefits of a streamlined, automated LoA process.

"Replacing pen-and-ink LoAs with data the industry can actually use is long overdue.

Supporting #LogYourLoAPain gives firms a practical way to turn a familiar frustration into measurable change."

Paul Holland, Founder and CEO, Beyond Encryption (Mailock)

Participation starts with logging estimated monthly volumes, then firms receive cost reports and join the wider coalition for change.

What Happens Next?

The #LogYourLoAPain initiative unfolds in three stages:

• Submit your estimated monthly LoA volumes using the online form.
• Receive a bespoke report detailing the annual costs incurred by your current LoA process.
• Join a coalition of advisers, technology providers, and industry stakeholders working on practical improvements.

As Billy Burnside, Managing Director of Criterion, explains:

"The LoA process has been a persistent source of industry frustration for a long time and needs tackling.

The #LogYourLoAPain initiative aims to highlight the true cost to advisers and providers of maintaining current practices, and it enables firms to see the benefits of working collaboratively and identifying solutions to improve this lengthy and outdated process."

Billy Burnside, Managing Director, Criterion

The campaign is open to UK advisers, planners, and paraplanners who handle Letters of Authority.

FAQs

How Does #Logyourloapain Work?

#LogYourLoAPain is a campaign to help advisers log their LoA volumes and measure the cost of outdated processes, building a case for change.

Who Can Participate?

Any UK adviser, planner, or paraplanner dealing with Letters of Authority can take part by submitting their data.

How Will This Initiative Help Advisers?

By participating, advisers will receive bespoke reports on their firm’s costs, and they’ll contribute to a movement for streamlined processes.

What Are Loas?

LoAs, or Letters of Authority, grant permission for advisers to access client policy information. They are often slow and outdated.

References

Just Fix It Already: The Broken Letter of Authority Process in UK Wealth Management, The Lang Cat, 2023

Reviewed by

Sam Kendall, 02.06.26

This content is for general information only and is not legal advice.