If you are looking for independent financial advice this has become more of a challenge since the Financial Service Authoritys (FSA) Retail Distribution Review (RDR) took effect last week.
This has seen thousands of advisers shed their independent status; an FSA study suggests that only 58% of advisers will remain independent post RDR with 8 of the largest 10 firms now offering restricted advice.
This allows a number of well-known financial adviser firms to cut costs by not having to know about all investments and not having to necessarily search all of the market for investments for their clients. This means that these firms could offer the client lower charges but experience suggests that this will not be the case.
A firm must inform a client whether their advice is restricted or independent, in person and in writing, before providing advice. We have remained independent post RDR as we firmly believe that for a truly holistic financial plan with an agreed ongoing review service there can simply be no compromise.
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