RDR and qualifications

JimmyJar

Hi,

I am reading a lot in the press and the internet about RDR and the fact financial advisors need to be qualified for next year.

So I was wondering. How do we know if a financial advisor is qualified? what qualification are we looking for? what is RDR and do they have to be part of that as well? I know to go on FSA website to check if advisor is authorised, however where do I look to see if they are qualified????

Will there still be loose financial advisors who arent qualified hanging around or do they just eliminate them in one fail swoop?

I know there are experts on here and thought best place to ask.

thanks

Jim

Rollinghome

JimmyJar wrote: »

Hi,

I am reading a lot in the press and the internet about RDR and the fact financial advisors need to be qualified for next year.

So I was wondering. How do we know if a financial advisor is qualified? what qualification are we looking for? what is RDR and do they have to be part of that as well? I know to go on FSA website to check if advisor is authorised, however where do I look to see if they are qualified????

Will there still be loose financial advisors who arent qualified hanging around or do they just eliminate them in one fail swoop?

I know there are experts on here and thought best place to ask.

thanks

Jim

"Independent" advisers, IFAs, already require a qualification of sorts though this is currently at a very low level and the equivalent of a City & Guilds in hairdressing. Other than the basic qualification there's no educational requirement.

Mark Hoban, the treasury minister, famously upset those resisting better qualifications by pointing out that a qualification that might be expected of an employee at a Macdonalds hamburger bar wasn't adequate for giving financial advice. http://citywire.co.uk/new-model-adviser/hoban-backs-rdr-ifas-need-more-than-mcdonalds-level-exams/a441830

After this year the minimum qualification for any IFA be raised from QCF3 to QCF4 and the intention of the FSA seems to be to gradually raise the level until it is at degree level. The intention is to shift IFAs away from just being salesmen towards giving proper advice.

You can find a list of the various qualifications here http://www.unbiased.co.uk/ifa-qualifications though it probably won't help you much. You can check out an IFA and what qualifications they have here http://www.fsa.gov.uk/register/firmSearchForm.do

There's also lots of information on how to choose an adviser on Justin Modray's site here http://www.candidmoney.com/intro/financialadvice.aspx

dunstonh

I am reading a lot in the press and the internet about RDR and the fact financial advisors need to be qualified for next year.

The have needed to be qualified since around 1994. The required level is increasing from next year.

So I was wondering. How do we know if a financial advisor is qualified?

Because they cannot get FSA authorisation unless they are.

what qualification are we looking for?

There are very many different types as there are different exam boards and over the years the versions have changed.

I know to go on FSA website to check if advisor is authorised, however where do I look to see if they are qualified????

If they are on the FSA register and currently authorised then they have the qualifications required for current regulations.

Will there still be loose financial advisors who arent qualified hanging around or do they just eliminate them in one fail swoop?

Not applicable given qualifications have been required for nearly 20 years.

bigfreddiel

the qualifiations will vary from equivalent of o-levels to1st year uni soits not going to be that high.

if you can't advise on a full range of products and areas you cannot claim to be independant, you will be a restricted advisor or ra for short.

this makes life a bit easier for us clients who know absolutely nothing about finance because our firts question is "can i see your qualifications?"

hope that helps

fj

Aegis

bigfreddiel wrote: »

the qualifiations will vary from equivalent of o-levels to1st year uni soits not going to be that high.

The current qualifications run the range from A-level difficulty (Certificate qualifications, e.g. CeFA or CertFP) through to Bachelor's Degree level (Advanced Diploma in Financial Planning). I think that's high enough, though obviously it's not enough in isolation - a lot of learning other than exams is also required to be a good adviser.