Biba will hold discussions with the FSA after the regulator's sudden U-turn on commission disclosure, Insurance Times has learned.
The two parties will meet following the FSA's unexpected announcement in October that it was planning a more "detailed exploration" of the issues around commission disclosure.
It is understood that FSA chief executive John Tiner inserted his comments on commission disclosure at the last minute.
One senior source said: "Everyone was so shocked by Tiner's comments because he just wasn't supposed to make them. As far as Biba was aware, disclosure was off the FSA radar."
Biba chief executive Eric Galbraith admitted disclosure was back on the agenda and it would be discussed with the FSA as part of a "normal review".
Galbraith said: "We will be opening up a dialogue with the FSA about how it intends to proceed with the review [on commission disclosure] and what else it is looking for from [the market] after the introduction of revised terms of business agreements."
The FSA would prefer the market to devise a solution to end murky commissions, but Tiner said because of the "diametrically opposed incentives of both sides" an agreed industry-led solution was likely to be "light years away".
The FSA is now to carry out objective market failure analysis and corresponding cost benefit analysis, covering both transparency to the customer and to the market.
Tiner insisted: "Only if both the market failure analysis and cost benefit tests are met and the market has still not come forward with any industry-led solutions, will we consider whether regulatory intervention is the best way forward."
