IFA and my mums investments

Aminatidi

Malthusian wrote: »

You can cash it in and Investec's website currently indicates that she'd get around 5% more than her initial capital than doing so. On another day she might get less depending on how the FTSE 100 and Investec are doing.

She would lose all her money if Investec went bust (or rather she'd be an unsecured creditor, which is as good as), and would also lose money if the FTSE 100 fell by around 55% or more from where it is now, so you could consider selling it. On the other hand it is only £5,500.

Does she have Lasting Powers of Attorney in place?

That's how I read it from the Investec site i.e. there is no penalty you just may not get your initial amount depending on how the FTSE is performing.

LPA is in place at her request though I should stress it isn't and hasn't been needed but my mum is the sort to plan ahead.

I'm still staggered what solicitors charge for that!

bowlhead99

Aminatidi wrote: »

LPA is in place at her request though I should stress it isn't and hasn't been needed but my mum is the sort to plan ahead.

I'm still staggered what solicitors charge for that!

If you think solicitors have staggering fees, you could l probably liken getting an LPA done via a solicitor, to deciding whether an IFA is 'worth it'. You can create and register one yourself quite easily, by filling in the relevant forms saying what you want; only if If you have more complex affairs might you get some real added value from a solicitor encouraging you what to think about.

As a halfway house, there are some services that offer a basic hand holding service for a fixed price (on top of the government registration fee), where you fill out a questionnaire and they review it before you finalize it. For example, which.co.uk has an offer for 50% off its standard price if you do it before end of Feb, so that would be £69.50 per PoA instead of £139. They would see if you had missed out a section or whatever, and you could ask them questions if you weren't sure what something meant.

But you would expect those bulk processing shops to be cheaper and more efficient than going to meet an individual solicitor firm and sitting down have to face with a lawyer. It depends if you value the face time, personal attention and intangibles such as 'peace of mind'.

lpgm

Aminatidi wrote: »

LPA is in place at her request though I should stress it isn't and hasn't been needed but my mum is the sort to plan ahead.

I'm still staggered what solicitors charge for that!

I really need to sort out LPAs myself - I think there's one for health and one for assets. You should put them in place before they are actually needed! I was under the impression you can just download the forms and fill them in yourself.

Aminatidi

lpgm wrote: »

I really need to sort out LPAs myself - I think there's one for health and one for assets. You should put them in place before they are actually needed! I was under the impression you can just download the forms and fill them in yourself.

You're probably right.

With the greatest of respect to my mum she's the "old school" sort with a lot of this stuff.

Took all my time to persuade her that paying £199 for car insurance gets you exactly the same level of cover that the "nice young lady" at Swinton was offering for £450

Malthusian

lpgm wrote: »

I really need to sort out LPAs myself - I think there's one for health and one for assets. You should put them in place before they are actually needed! I was under the impression you can just download the forms and fill them in yourself.

You can. Appoint at least two attorneys joint and several, don't include silly restrictions, sign in the right order, register it with the OPG as soon as it's signed, and it's difficult to go wrong.

If you make a mistake the OPG will simply return it and you can try again; that is why it is essential to register it as soon as it is signed and not wait until the donor has lost capacity.

C_Mababejive

She doesnt need an IFA for that small amount of money

[Deleted User]

lpgm wrote: »

I really need to sort out LPAs myself - I think there's one for health and one for assets. You should put them in place before they are actually needed! I was under the impression you can just download the forms and fill them in yourself.

Current edition of Which? magazine features an "Power of Attorney made easy" offer until the end of February. May be useful to some.
which.co.uk/ncarpoa


Concerning the OP, I agree that the IFA should be dismissed

Aminatidi

So as a quick update as of a couple of days ago my mum was quite amenable to dropping the IFA and going with her own direct Vanguard account with me most likely doing the "hands on" stuff.

By a curious co-incidence a paper statement from the platform has landed today for the last 12 month period.

Not sure if it's been sent because it was the review last week or if it's just a co-incidence.

£35K in the platform.

£850 in fees.

Speaking to my mum she has paper statements that show everything month by month and I've seen those but neither she or I recall one which is a summary of fees that outlines the bottom line so starkly.

It's actually helped my case no-end as she's literally shocked at the amount as it's right there in black and white rather than "hidden" amongst quarterly summaries or whatever.

£850 ouch!!

SonOf

By a curious co-incidence a paper statement from the platform has landed today for the last 12 month period.

Not sure if it's been sent because it was the review last week or if it's just a co-incidence.

Most platforms issue them this time of the year. Platform valuations and cost disclosures get sent at defined times.

Speaking to my mum she has paper statements that show everything month by month and I've seen those but neither she or I recall one which is a summary of fees that outlines the bottom line so starkly.

She may not recall that but they were issued in 2019 as well (typically between January and April).

It's actually helped my case no-end as she's literally shocked at the amount as it's right there in black and white rather than "hidden" amongst quarterly summaries or whatever.

Many platforms disclose the charges on a quarterly basis as well. Nothing is hidden. However, the person needs to read them.

Do remember though that the transaction charges column is one that should largely be ignored when looking at these. Its the OCF, platform charge and adviser charge that matter.

Aminatidi

Yes you're right "hidden" is my bad as like you say it's there in black and white in all the previous statements she just hasn't paid attention as "that's what the IFA is for"

Sorry if I sound a bit anti-IFA as it's genuinely not the case, I think the story for me is simply "fees" and how much they add up if you don't pay attention.