AI chatbots gave inaccurate UK financial and ISA guidance
Consumer research organization Which? tested popular AI chatbots and found they gave inaccurate financial advice to UK consumers, including misleading guidance on ISA investment limits, tax refunds, and travel insurance requirements.
What happened
Which? tested 40 questions on five popular AI chatbots and found widespread inaccuracies in financial guidance. ChatGPT and Copilot advised breaking HMRC investment limits on ISAs by failing to notice an error in an ISA allowance question, suggesting consumers invest Β£25,000 when the correct limit was Β£20,000. ChatGPT wrongly said travel insurance was mandatory to visit most EU countries, while Meta's AI gave incorrect information about claiming compensation for delayed flights.
Google Gemini advised withholding money from a builder if work went wrong, a move Which? said risked exposing consumers to breach of contract claims. When asked how to claim a tax refund from HMRC, ChatGPT and Perplexity presented links to premium tax-refund companies alongside the free government service, which Which? called worrying as these companies are known for charging high fees and spurious charges. A user reported ChatGPT gave out-of-date tax code information requiring multiple corrections.
Reported impact
Meta's AI received the worst score in the Which? testing, followed by ChatGPT; Copilot and Gemini scored slightly higher. Estimates suggest between one in six and as many as half of UK users consult AI for financial advice. Which? said the research "uncovered far too many inaccuracies and misleading statements for comfort, especially when leaning on AI for important issues like financial or legal queries".
Index analysis
The inaccuracies relate to core financial regulatory limits and requirements in the UK, including HMRC ISA investment thresholds, tax code information, and mandatory insurance requirements. The Financial Conduct Authority noted that unlike regulated advice provided by authorised firms, advice from general-purpose AI tools is not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or Financial Services Compensation Scheme protections.
Governance controls
The Financial Conduct Authority regulator acknowledged the gap in consumer protections, stating that general-purpose AI tools providing financial advice fall outside the regulatory framework that covers authorised firms.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.