Moneyontoast 'cheap' financial advice!

cepheus

This site may be of some interest to some, but infuriate others (mentioning no names). Make sure you don't get your fingers burnt!

https://www.moneyontoast.com/

A new low-cost online service plans to take advantage of the overhaul of the financial advice industry by giving bite-sized consultations, starting at £35

Read more: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/investing/article-2144264/Moneyontoast-tries-tempt-financial-advice-orphans-35-bite-size-service.html#ixzz1wC5HWImq

dunstonh

It isnt cheap. £35 per 20 minutes equates to £105 per hour. That is around the typical rate of an hourly priced advice service out of city.

It sounds a bit like those low cost SIPPs you always see marketed which are more expensive than personal pensions. However, people fall for it because they say they are low cost.

but infuriate others (mentioning no names).

hmmmm....

srcandas

cepheus wrote: »

This site may be of some interest to some,

Well if nothing else perhaps it will make the industry get its act together and start meeting a wider range of needs. For those who want a few factual questions answered, and if Dunston hasn't answered them here;) , then it could be great.

Also good that you can try them out for £35 or £70. An IFA wanted me to start off at £3500.

But I guess over the next year we are going to see a lot more innovations, some good, some bad :beer:

ultimate_cheapskate_2

Admittedly it doesn't sound exceptionally cheap if you think of it as £105 per hour - but I've actually been on the site and registered and it's made quite obvious that filling in the 'factfind' is supposed to make sure you don't actually need an hour as presumably they'll get all the relevant info about you before the appointment.

To be honest, I think it's a good idea as I visited a 'traditional' financial adviser once and at least half the appointment time was spent going over my personal details and whatnot.

grey_gym_sock

generally, can't you get initial recommendations from an IFA, and not owe anything if you don't like their advice? if the charge is £35 for 20 minutes, you'll owe that even if you found it useless. arguably paying for time is fairer, but it's not all in the consumer's favour.

also, i doubt that 20 minutes is long enough to get anything useful done.

dunstonh

generally, can't you get initial recommendations from an IFA, and not owe anything if you don't like their advice?

Only a foolish IFA would present their solution in the required detail without getting a commitment for some remuneration.

To be honest, thinking about it more, breaking it into 20 minute segments is not a bad idea and is different. For some, that may be attractive. However, with a typical transaction requiring many hours of background work over the process then it is probable that 20 minutes will be an insignificant issue.

It would suit a certain type of client but not others. So, as a model catering for a type of person, it seems fine. Although I do come back to the point that £100-£125 is the typical amount you see and therefore £105 isnt cheap. It is in the typical range.

To be honest, I think it's a good idea as I visited a 'traditional' financial adviser once and at least half the appointment time was spent going over my personal details and whatnot.

The problem with factfinding is that there are two levels of details. Hard facts and soft facts. Someone filling in a factfind will give you the hard facts. However, the soft facts are often where you learn the most about the person and that requires communication. That communication can be over phone, email or face to face. The soft facts and ongoing communication can help an adviser gauge ability to understand or check understanding.