FSCS sets levy at £311m as 45,000 claims wait in the wing

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has estimated its total levies for 2013/14 will be £311 million, but confirmed fund management firms will avoid the annual charge.

Despite more than 13,000 claims thought to be in the pipeline, the FSCS said fund managers will not face an annual levy, while advisers will be handed a £76 million bill.

In 2012 major defaults such as the collapse of Worldspreads, MF Global and Pritchards Stockbrokers contributed to the thousands of claims that flooded in.

According to its budget for 2013/14, the FSCS processed just over 12,000 complaints linked to MF, Worldspreads, Pritchards and other stockbroker and structured products in 2012/13.  it estimated around 13,419 could still be in the pipeline.

While many of these claims will be absorbed by 2012/13's budget, the compensation body said these larger defaults have caused volatility in claim numbers in the past.

It also anticipated another 1,556 claims linked to Arch Cru might still come in, slightly ahead of the number of the number processed in the last financial year.

Across the board, the FSCS said more than 44,000 claims were dealt with during 2012/13, and expects a further 45,198 in the year ahead.