4th December 2012

Survey closing

FSA head of investment intermediaries Linda Woodall was reported as saying: “We are encouraged to see a large number of advisers plan to provide advice to people with smaller pots to invest. It is important that a range of services will be available for consumers once the changes to financial advice come in.”

Really? What is a large number of advisers, how do they know? Is this a case of the FSA being told in a survey what they want to hear rather than what they need to hear?

After all, very many advisers are generally uncomfortable about saying anything that may be used in evidence against them when in communication with the regulator.

The FSA’s findings follow research published by Deloitte earlier this month, which estimated up to 5.5 million customers would stop using, or lack access to advisers post-RDR as a result of adviser charging.

Now, if the FSA assumptions are correct it will be in large part due to the in-built sense of customer care that advisers have for their clients.

But, if they are wrong and client requests to their adviser cannot be dealt with on a pro bono basis, and they will not pay a fee, what happens?

And we are trying to find out what the true landscape of shifting sands is and already we can se that all is not what it seems.

For example on Segmentation, RDR has meant that many IFAs have had to review their client base and segment clients into groups they feel they are able to service post RDR and groups they feel they won't be able to service in a fee based world.

But how many have segmented their client base?’

Yes – completed 24%

Yes – but not finalised 30%

No –but need to 8%

No – no intention of doing so 34%

Can you help us to help you by completing this important survey?

The results, that we will fully share with you, will allow comparison of your RDR problems, experiences, successes, failures, intentions and solutions with your peers that will no doubt help you fine-tune your newly formed proposition.

RDR