Contact back into SERPS... or not?

full-time-mum

jamesd wrote: »

But you're way above the age where you should be contracted in if you do work, so should do that.

Just for the record, what is the age above which you should be contracted in?

dunstonh

45 for men, 40 for women.

full-time-mum

dunstonh wrote: »

45 for men, 40 for women.

Based on that then, I should already contract back in and OH in a couple of years.

Can I just confirm that any contributions made after those ages are unlikely to perform as well out as they would in even if well managed?

dunstonh

Can I just confirm that any contributions made after those ages are unlikely to perform as well out as they would in even if well managed?

The rebates are not high enough after those ages to make it justifiable. Effectively you would need increasingly higher returns. That is of course possible and a risk an individual can take but its a risk that you need to be aware of. For some, the 25% TFC and ability to take early may be more important than a few pounds a week difference at the end of the day.

full-time-mum

jamesd wrote: »

full-time-mum, try unbiased.co.uk and eliminate any that offer neither New Model Adviser (NMA) nor Client Agreed Remuneration (CAR) pricing. That should rule out most of those who aren't keeping up with the trends. Then ask for second opinions here on whatever is proposed. You could also email or private message dunstonh to see if dunstonh is interested in doing business with you - dunstonh can't initiate this but you can, if you wish. Still ask for second opinions here, but don't say who the firm is or that it's dunstonh's.

I've typed my post code into this site and it has come up with 3 locally - will I have to contact them to find out about NMA and CAR? Should I look for someone offering both or just one?

Any idea how much I should expect to pay? (I know, how long is a piece of string?)
and should I be looking at fees or commission?
I assume that our original IFA was on commission as I don't recall paying fees.

There are a whole load of check boxes relating to qualifications - what should I look for in this area?

Your help is appreciated. The more I go on, the more niave I realise we are in this area and I know sooooo much more than when we originally took out these policies.

full-time-mum

Just thought of another question.

2012 was mentioned in a previous post. Will everyone have to contract back in by then?

dunstonh

I've typed my post code into this site and it has come up with 3 locally - will I have to contact them to find out about NMA and CAR? Should I look for someone offering both or just one?

NMA IFA is a business model. CAR is customer agreed remuneration. CAR is the FSAs term for agreeing a fee for the work in advance but being able to use commission to pay for it therefore not having a percentage based figure which may pay far more commission than the work really justifies. I.e. an NMA IFA working to 1% plus 0.5% will rebate any commission above 1% either into the plan or use it to reduce annual management charges.

CAR is slightly different as it can be like the NMA method or it can be an agreed fixed fee.

Any IFA that has an interest in the profession will know what Customer agreed remuneration or NMA are. That in itself may give an indication of the quality of the adviser as the FSA want all IFAs to work to CAR by 2009 (still in proposal state and under consultation). This is why many IFAs have already moved to that model. If an IFA doesnt know about what is coming next year then it indicates poor planning and understanding.

Any idea how much I should expect to pay? (I know, how long is a piece of string?)
and should I be looking at fees or commission?
I assume that our original IFA was on commission as I don't recall paying fees.

Commission is still the most common method as most people dont like writing a cheque for something they feel they can get for free at a bank. They dont realise that the bank is making their products more expensive to compensate. So this encouraged IFAs to work on the same basis.

A good idea is to agree the remuneration (CAR) before you start. i.e. 1-2% of the amount of the fund plus trail. This way the adviser gets paid the same and removes any potential product bias. Having a cap and collar to this is common as well. i.e. minimum of £400 and maximum of £2000. That way the larger funds dont still end up paying too much.

Remember that NMA IFAs are focused on the trail commission not so much the initial. However, NMA IFAs also tend to get the higher value investments and may price themselves out of smaller investments on purpose.

If all that starts getting confusing or its not a large fund then you can fall back to commission basis.

There are a whole load of check boxes relating to qualifications - what should I look for in this area?

Ignore it. The filter for qualifications is naff. There have been so many versions over the years that if you pick one exam you may eliminate all those that have the same or higher but a different version. The transaction are looking it is not specialist (beyond investing) and doesnt require anything higher than default.

2012 was mentioned in a previous post. Will everyone have to contract back in by then?

That is the proposal although it may end up being pushed back to 2015. When it comes it will be a central change and not something that requires work on your part.