Proving value for money on ongoing charges: what to log per client
The price and value outcome (PRIN 2A.4) asks whether the ongoing fee is justified by the ongoing value. The proof is per-client logging — the same fields, every year.
What the FCA says about ongoing charges
The price and value outcome (PRIN 2A.4) applies to the whole ongoing relationship, including what the client keeps paying after the initial advice. The FCA's Consumer Duty pages set out how the price and value outcome covers ongoing charges.
The FCA's Enforcement Watch newsletters describe firms that could not demonstrate what clients received for their charges. The per-client log is the record that answers that question.
The four log fields
Four fields turn an ongoing charge into an evidence trail. Each is logged against the client, the same way, every year.
Service delivered
What was actually done for the client this period — the review, the call, the report. Concrete, not 'ongoing support'.
When it happened
The date, so the record shows the service is genuinely ongoing and nothing slips through an annual gap.
Value against the fee
The justification for the ongoing charge in this client's circumstances — the value-for-money paragraph in log form, not a generic statement.
Next review date
When the next review is due, so the trail is continuous and the annual cycle is visible.
The annual review that slipped, the value justification that lives in the adviser's head instead of the file — each is a fee-for-no-service or fair-value flag waiting to be found. Log it, and the record is the evidence.
Worked example: the year the charge went silent
The charge kept being taken. The record went quiet. Compare the two versions (anonymised, illustrative).
Before
“Ongoing fee £2,400. One call with the client. No record of what happened.”
After
“April: review meeting; portfolio checked against objectives. June: call on the tax impact of the top-up. Value note tied to this year's circumstances. Next review booked.” — four fields, one year, a continuous trail.
Common mistakes in the ongoing log
- One generic line instead of a log. “Ongoing support provided” is not a record; a reviewer cannot tell what happened, when, or why.
- Dates missing or vague. Without a date the record cannot prove the service is ongoing — which is the point of the log.
- Value against the fee left generic. A value note that could apply to any client proves nothing about this charge for this client.
- A broken next-review trail. No next review date means the record stops — and the fee-for-no-service question finds it.
The log at a glance
| Field | Example entry | What it proves |
|---|---|---|
| Service delivered | April: annual review meeting; portfolio check | The charge was earned by real activity |
| When it happened | 12 April 2026; 3 June 2026 | The service is ongoing, not a one-off |
| Value against the fee | Review re-ran the risk profile after the house purchase | The justification fits this client, not a template |
| Next review date | 10 April 2027 | The trail is continuous and the cycle visible |
Related reads
The ongoing log is how fair value stays evidenced between recommendations — start at the fair value hub for the whole silo, see the rule behind this check for the PRIN 2A.4 basis, and the value paragraph at file level for the version that appears inside the recommendation itself.
Frequently asked questions
How detailed does the log have to be?
Detailed enough that a reviewer can see what happened for the client, when, and why it justified the charge. It does not need to be long — one specific line beats pages of generic ‘ongoing support’.
What if the client declined the review?
Record that it was offered, what was said, and the outcome. A missed review becomes visible only when there is no record of what happened and why.
Is one entry per year enough?
The record should reflect the service the client was promised. Log every meaningful interaction, and at minimum the annual review — the fields work the same way every year.
Your next step
Take one ongoing client and rebuild the log: service delivered, dates, value against the fee, and the next review date. Fill the gaps before the yearly review, not after. Proven Duty tracks the service record and flags the clients whose logs go silent. see pricing or talk to us.