Can I Change My IFA ?

jem16

Blueflue wrote: »

Thank you dunstonh,my understanding was/is based on what he told me at the time i.e. that he would provide regular reviews.

There is a difference between providing regular reviews if you ask for them and pay extra for them - ie transactional service and providing regular reviews as part of an ongoing servicing agreement - ie you are paying the IFA an ongoing monthly or yearly fee.

Do you know what agreement you have with your current IFA?

If the likes of Skipton Financial Services can off this, then I think I might like to change.

I would steer well clear of this firm as it's a tied salesforce and only offers a choice of commission paying products.

Is your current adviser definitely an IFA?

jem16

Blueflue wrote: »

If I didn't seek professional help,it is more than likely that I would make inappropriate selections and as a result lose my money very quickly.

Professional help is the right way to go but not through a bank or building society. They are usually very expensive and low quality which will not be good for you.

How much money are you having looked after?

opinions4u

Blueflue wrote: »

opinions4u
From your reply,I presume you possess a level of expertise in the selection of personal investment products that I don't.

I worked in banking for 20+ years. Same firm. I was 2 hours away from being a financial adviser and had I had the balls to take that leap I would have gone on to be an IFA.

But I don't think bigger is better when it comes to financial advise, independent or otherwise.

It leads to the parent company demanding more leads, more sales and more profit. It becomes an organised sales force rather than a professional advisory service.

If I didn't seek professional help,it is more than likely that I would make inappropriate selections and as a result lose my money very quickly.

My point wasn't that you should DIY. It's that you should use the expertise of a small-medium IFA firm if you're unable to DIY.

That's not to say that I know enough about this arm of Skipton Building Society that you refer to. They could be superb for all I know. But generally speaking, the banks and building societies are better known for their slick sales processes than their client care.

www.unbiased.co.uk would be my starting point. Ideally along with recommendations from others.

counteroff

I too was considering this company. When I phoned them,they informed me that they were a completely separate company to the building society and they offered 'whole of market' advice.

dunstonh

counteroff wrote: »

I too was considering this company. When I phoned them,they informed me that they were a completely separate company to the building society and they offered 'whole of market' advice.

Whole of market is not independent. Whole of market means they do not operate on fee basis (fee basis includes you agreeing the fee but collecting it via the product). e..g fee agreed is £1000. The £1000 can be deducted from the investment and no commission payable (if there is commission then it is rebated to you). If it was commission basis and say it was £3000 commission then the £3000 is deducted from the investment. So, you would be £2000 worse off than fee option.

Vortigern

counteroff wrote: »

I too was considering this company. When I phoned them,they informed me that they were a completely separate company to the building society and they offered 'whole of market' advice.

Hmm - that's counteroff's first post above. Welcome to the forum.

Perhaps I'm jumping to conclusions here, but I can't help feeling that counteroff is perhaps an employee or representative of Skipton Financial Services. Apologies if I'm wrong.

I just checked the website of SFS. It says they are a wholly owned subsidiary of Skipton Building Society. It says they offer 'whole of market' advice, but they don't claim to be independent financial advisers.

Rollinghome

Please don't assume that you won't be ripped off provided you use a smaller IFA. You might want to read this thread https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3788949

Never lose sight of the fact that 95% of all IFAs are former salesmen. The product providers pay them commission to sell their products, not to give you free advice. Treat them with the same degree of caution that you would any other salesmen.

Due to the problems of mis-selling the FSA is banning current system of sales commission from the end of this year. Better qualifications from the current very basic level will also be required.

Just as with any other purchase you should try to learn as much as possible about whatever it is you're buying and not overly rely on what the sales person selling it tells you. If possible read a few books such as the 'FT Guide to Investing' by Prof Glen Arnold, FT 'Be Your Own Financial Adviser' by Jonquil Lowe or possibly 'Smarter Investing' by Tim Hale, also an FT publication. It's not nearly as difficult as it might at first seem. All from Amazon.

If you don't know anything about what you're buying then you are likely to be sold whatever most benefits the salesman rather than what most benefits you.

On Skipton Financial Services, I've seen them in action twice. One from several years ago seemed honest and reasonably knowledgeable. The one more recently was making entirely false claims to the person he was advising which suggested he was either very poorly informed or deliberately dishonest - I had no doubt it was a combination of both.

If you look through your paperwork you'll probably find your IFA is being paid annual commission on the products he sold you. He should be doing something for that.

counteroff

Vortigern wrote: »

Hmm - that's counteroff's first post above. Welcome to the forum.

Perhaps I'm jumping to conclusions here, but I can't help feeling that counteroff is perhaps an employee or representative of Skipton Financial Services. Apologies if I'm wrong.

I just checked the website of SFS. It says they are a wholly owned subsidiary of Skipton Building Society. It says they offer 'whole of market' advice, but they don't claim to be independent financial advisers.

Vortigern,
You ARE jumping to the wrong conclusion,I am a person seeking financial advice and that is all.

counteroff

dunstonh wrote: »

Whole of market is not independent. Whole of market means they do not operate on fee basis (fee basis includes you agreeing the fee but collecting it via the product). e..g fee agreed is £1000. The £1000 can be deducted from the investment and no commission payable (if there is commission then it is rebated to you). If it was commission basis and say it was £3000 commission then the £3000 is deducted from the investment. So, you would be £2000 worse off than fee option.

Thanks dunstonh. Would you advise always paying a fee as the cheaper alternative?

dunstonh

Thanks dunstonh. Would you advise always paying a fee as the cheaper alternative?

In 2013 you wont have the choice. However, for now, all but the smallest cases are best by fee. Take the example above £1000-£2000 would not be unreasonable for fee basis. Yet £3000-£5000 is the commission range. Most fee based advisers have a minimum fee. Often around the £500-£750 mark. So a £10k investment on fee basis would be more than commission.