Tuesday, 27 November 2012 10:50
Qualifications and transparency encourage public to seek advice
Consumers have said good qualifications and transparent fees will encourage them to seek professional financial advice according to the first poll by the Institute of Financial Planning.
The IFP is running a series of daily polls in association with YouGov during Financial Planning Week of over 1,000 consumers.
The first question asked was: "From 1st January 2013, the Financial Services Authority are bringing in changes to the way financial advice is provided in the UK with the aim of driving up professional standards. As part of this, all authorised financial advisers in the UK will need to have higher professional qualifications. Also, commission payments from the sale of financial products will be banned, which will lead to greater transparency as far as the cost of advice is concerned.
"Taking the above into account, to what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement. "These changes would give me more confidence to seek professional financial advice"
Some 54 per cent of people agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, rising to 56 per cent of those aged 18-24 years old.
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The lowest category was those aged 45-54 years old where only 47 per cent agreed or strongly agreed the changes would encourage them to seek advice.
Rebecca Taylor FIFP CFPCM President of the IFP, said: "It is reassuring to see that the majority of those surveyed are reacting positively to this massive change. This shows that those individuals are interested in planning for their future and prepared to take an active role in speaking to a high quality professional and entrust them with important decisions.
John Ions, chief executive of Liontrust, said: "There have been many initiatives over the years to encourage savings but various regulators have continued to make it confusing and cumbersome to the person who is investing.
"What is consistent is the fact that financial advisers do a fantastic job in navigating this minefield, ensuring individuals not only understand but feel confident in what they need to do to achieve greater security."
These figures contradict a survey yesterday by Defaqto which found RDR awareness remained low among the general public.
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The IFP is running a series of daily polls in association with YouGov during Financial Planning Week of over 1,000 consumers.
The first question asked was: "From 1st January 2013, the Financial Services Authority are bringing in changes to the way financial advice is provided in the UK with the aim of driving up professional standards. As part of this, all authorised financial advisers in the UK will need to have higher professional qualifications. Also, commission payments from the sale of financial products will be banned, which will lead to greater transparency as far as the cost of advice is concerned.
"Taking the above into account, to what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement. "These changes would give me more confidence to seek professional financial advice"
Some 54 per cent of people agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, rising to 56 per cent of those aged 18-24 years old.
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The lowest category was those aged 45-54 years old where only 47 per cent agreed or strongly agreed the changes would encourage them to seek advice.
Rebecca Taylor FIFP CFPCM President of the IFP, said: "It is reassuring to see that the majority of those surveyed are reacting positively to this massive change. This shows that those individuals are interested in planning for their future and prepared to take an active role in speaking to a high quality professional and entrust them with important decisions.
John Ions, chief executive of Liontrust, said: "There have been many initiatives over the years to encourage savings but various regulators have continued to make it confusing and cumbersome to the person who is investing.
"What is consistent is the fact that financial advisers do a fantastic job in navigating this minefield, ensuring individuals not only understand but feel confident in what they need to do to achieve greater security."
These figures contradict a survey yesterday by Defaqto which found RDR awareness remained low among the general public.
• Want to receive a free weekly summary of the best news stories from our website? Just go to home page and submit your name and email address. If you are already logged in you will need to log out to see the e-newsletter sign up. You can then log in again.
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