Just under a third (30%) of Financial Planners have reviewed their client fact finds to include questions about ESG preferences, according to a new report.

According to Aegon’s 2021 Adviser Attitudes Report, 41% of Financial Planners have seen an increase in requests from clients about ESG products.

Almost a quarter (22%) of Financial Planners had increased the ESG options they offer through their CIPs.

Less commonly, 11% of Financial Planners have added ESG to all recommended portfolios as part of their standard offering.

In-house ESG expertise was less common. Only 3% of Financial Planning firms said they have bought in ESG expertise into their team.

However, over a third (35%) of Financial Planners told Aegon that they have not taken any steps to respond to demand for ESG options.

Tim Orton, managing director at Aegon Investment Solutions, said: “UK savers put almost £1 billion a month on average into ESG funds in 2020, up 66% from the previous year and these findings highlight the changes taking place in the advice industry which are facilitating this movement of money.

“There is clear evidence that advisers are gearing up to meet rising demand from clients and we expect to see evidence of this increasing in future surveys. Adviser businesses, asset managers and providers alike will be upskilling, recruiting and re-structuring over the next few years to build the ESG capability they need to meet ─ not just increased demand from customers, but increased legislation from regulators.”

The findings in the Aegon Adviser Attitudes Report 2021 are based on the views of 251 financial advisers from across the UK. Fieldwork was conducted by Opinium between 20 and 28 October 2020