How we are paid
The provision of quality financial advice almost always requires one or more face to face meetings. Such meetings can either take place in our offices, in your home, or your work place, which ever you prefer.
At the first meeting, in addition to assessing your needs and whether we can help you with them, we discuss the way that we are to be paid, should we advise you. Many clients are happy to pay us nothing, leaving us to retain any commissions payable to us from product providers in respect of products arranged with them, but we are equally happy to negotiate that we charge a fee and work on reduced or a nil commission basis.
If we would receive commissions from any product provider in respect of any business placed with them as a result of our recommendations, we would always tell you how much we would receive and where a fee arrangement has been agreed, this amount is taken into account when determining the fee.
Fees will usually be based upon the complexity of the advice and the number of hours of work needed to research and execute it. Lower hourly rates apply to administrative tasks as compared to the services of a specialist adviser. Most financial advice is VAT exempt so we do not charge VAT on fees, but as some product providers apply exactly the same charges whether commissions are paid or not it does not automatically follow that payment of fees works out cheaper than allowing us to retain commissions. In addition as many product providers offer enhanced allocations (they credit the investment plan with more money than you have invested at outset), lower investment through payment of fees can actually be disadvantageous and careful consideration of the issues is required before any firm decisions are taken.
Whether we take our remuneration by way of commission or fees will be a matter of discussion and agreement and no charges for fees will be made without prior notification in writing.
For mortgage advice you can choose how we are paid: you can either pay us a fee, usually of £250, or we can accept commission from the lender.
Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.