Prudential ISA Switch

thriftylynny

I have a Prudential S & S ISA Risk MGD 2 & simply want to switch this to a higher risk level .In order to do this I understand that i will require the services of an IFA to complete an online form on my behalf Problem is actually finding one? I have other significant funds with Pru but they are reluctant to advise seeing as i don't pay for their ongoing adviser charge & were actually quite rude to me on the phone!.The ISA team advised me to contact Unbiased for a local IFA & that has come back with no match found .Has anyone experienced this before ?

dunstonh

In order to do this I understand that i will require the services of an IFA to complete an online form on my behalf

Did you buy the product via an IFA originally?    (unusual choice but possible).   Or was it via a Pru sales rep?   Intermediary products often require the transaction to go via an intermediary.  Not all but from what you are saying, Pru is one of those.

 I have other significant funds with Pru but they are reluctant to advise seeing as i don't pay for their ongoing adviser charge & were actually quite rude to me on the phone!

If you are not paying for ongoing servicing then you should not expect to get ongoing servicing.

.The ISA team advised me to contact Unbiased for a local IFA & that has come back with no match found .Has anyone experienced this before ?

Unbiased is not a reliable source for IFAs nowadays. It is no longer a directory but a lead generation service and it includes FAs as well as IFAs.  Most of the IFA firm owners I know have dropped paying unbiased for a paid-for entry.   They just have the free entry which you would only see if you unselect the option to show paying firms only.  If you left that option selected (the default) then you would get far fewer listed.
However, I very much doubt you will find an IFA willing to do this as an advised fund switch needs the full advice service.  Factfind, analysis, research and report. For a new client, that is a time consuming process and this is one of the busiest times of the year for IFAs.  I suspect your transaction would be priced in a way that indicates they are not interested as they focus on their clients. (i.e. priced high to put you off).

Alexland

If you already have a view on what asset allocation you require it may be easier to transfer the ISA to another provider.

jimjames

I'd suggest the same as Alexland, move the ISA to a different provider and you can choose whatever risk level/fund you want. You may even find it is cheaper than the current cost you pay.

dunstonh

I concur with the above.  If you are not using an adviser then don't use a provider that needs you to use a provider.   Instead, use a provider that caters for the DIY market.

thriftylynny

Thanks for comments Dunstonh . The isa is part of my portfolio initially administered by a pru sales adviser , i paid a hefty charge for this at the time & refuse to pay more hefty charges for advice on mediocre returns ! I just thought it would be a standard query & something i would be able to pay a one off fee for validating one form , but i imagine you're correct in saying that it,s not really worth a FA's time to do so . Does feel a little strange that i have little control over my own investment though . I am able to switch between funds really easily myself, just by filling in a simple form within the prufund fund however, but not the prufund isa ! Alexland i may look at transferring , i'll take a look.

dunstonh

The isa is part of my portfolio initially administered by a pru sales adviser , i paid a hefty charge for this at the time & refuse to pay more hefty charges for advice on mediocre returns !

I guessed that would be the case.   The problem an IFA would have is that most would not recommend an adjustment within Pru.  Their investment range is limited and better alternatives exist elsewhere.  So, the IFA would likely want to recommend an alternative as best advice.  Plus, IFAs are there to give advice. Not to take instruction.  Sometimes it is possible to do execution only but a number of the platforms will not accept execution-only business.  I dont know if that is the case with Pru.   Also, some adviser firms refuse to do execution only as its a transaction that has to be declared on the annual liability insurance renewal proposal and its treated negatively in terms of cost. Not just that year but every year thereafter.  So, an IFA would be paying for a one off transaction every year for the rest of time they are in business.

Does feel a little strange that i have little control over my own investment though . 

The market is effectively split between a provider that caters for DIY (you in other words) and for those using advisers.   Currently, you are using one that is only available via advisers.   Transferring to a DIY provider would make your life so much easier. 

Albermarle

Transfer to another ISA provider is very simple. You just sign up on line and request that they transfer the PRU ISA in .
Most likely the transfer will be in cash and then you will have to decide how to invest in within the new S&S ISA.
Some ISA providers try to make it easy by only offering a handful of simple funds ( Cautious , balanced, aggressive etc ) whilst others offer thousands of funds, shares, ETF's etc . Then of course some inbetween . 

thriftylynny

Thanks for your comments, i often read your advice on the financial forums ! I did consider transfer but have to admit to getting confused with performance /growth charts , mistaking what looks like an 8% growth rate with an historical yield say of just 1.69%, embarrassed to say i still don't understand it? At least with where i am at present i can work out the natural yield of my 3 year investments with pen & paper ,month on month , this year average of +3.5% across it all {110k} .Maybe i could be doing better than this i'm not sure & guess that as i am only around 4 years away from SP i should just play it safe ...if i was younger i'd be looking for long term growth & transferring the lot ! I

dunstonh

mistaking what looks like an 8% growth rate with an historical yield say of just 1.69%, embarrassed to say i still don't understand it? 

Yield is the income generated within the fund but doesnt include any growth.  i.e. any dividends paid are classed as yield.  Whereas if share prices go up, that is not included in the yield.   You can largely ignore yield unless you are using an investment strategy that requires a high yield (nowadays less common than in the past). Total return is the important bit. That is your growth and income giving you the total return.

thriftylynny

Many thanks for your explanation dunstonh , i have finally got my head round that now!! I've decided to transfer to VLS 60% Equity( Income) via HL . Probably best i go with the income class as i intend to use any returns for topping up my retirement income in around 4 years .