Finding a new financial adviser can be a daunting task. We hope you will be able to use the following ten questions (and suggested answers) to ensure that your new advisor meets your needs. 1 – Are you independent? Until recently, there are only two types of financial advisers – tied or independent. A tied financial adviser can only advise on products from the company while their own independent financial adviser to act on behalf of clients, and can access the product from all markets. Recent changes have increased the types of advisers to include independent, the entire market, multi-tied and tied advisers. Always seek independent financial advice. A single company may not be the most competitive in all areas of financial planning so the ability to select from any of the available products / companies is a minimum starting point for good financial advice. Multi-tied advisers might be meant to represent the ‘best’ product on the market but they will not have the same level as the choice of independent financial advisers. 2 – How long have you become a financial advisor? Experience is not everything, and support a strong back-ups and other IFAs within the company may be equally important. However, you may have more confidence in advisers who are not new entrants to the retail financial services market and have at least some experience under their belts. You can check the background of the IFA on the Financial Services Authority (FSA) register at www. FSA. gov. uk / register. 3 – What qualifications do you hold? The basic requirements for an IFA minimum qualifications are Certificate in Financial Planning or Certificate in Financial Advice (CeFA). Both sets of qualifications are the minimum standards and do not reflect the special skills or knowledge. You must shop around to find an adviser who holds the Diploma or Advanced Diploma in Financial Planning (formerly known as the Advanced Financial Planning Certificate – AFPC). To a certain area, you should seek advice of qualified advisors that are more advanced. Highest level of qualification Certified Financial Planner license and, recently, Chartered Financial Planner status. There are relatively few advisers in the UK who hold one of the two qualifiers, but they represent the highest technical standards. 4 – How do you charge for your services? Always looking for an adviser who offers a choice of paying fees for their services, rather than working on commission. This is the only way you can ensure complete impartiality. You must request an engagement letter after the first meeting that determines the services to be provided and how this will be charged. Fee-based advice is still often paid in the form of commissions generated by sales of financial products. 5 – Do you have a specialist in your company? Very few financial advisers have expert knowledge in all areas of financial planning. Make sure that the advisor can refer you to other specialists within the firm, and that are willing to do so when necessary. They also may need to refer you to specialists outside their own companies for certain areas of advice, and they must explain to you when it will be necessary. 6 – What is the ongoing level of service you offer? The answer to this question is bound to vary from company to company. If the adviser will receive remuneration continuing to serve your policy, you should expect to receive some services in return. Advisors will offer various levels of ongoing service, and you must ensure that this is agreed in the early stages of your discussions. Some companies charge a fee, monthly, quarterly or annual fee for this service is in progress and suggestions. Good-quality review conducted once a year is almost always make sense. At a very basic level this should be to update the understanding of counsel ‘of your financial position and enable them to review your product or investment that you have. 7 – How do you work with other professionals? A good financial adviser should be able to work with lawyers and accountants. Advice that they need to give a compliment advice from other professional advisers. Ensure that the financial adviser you feel comfortable working with other professionals and find out how they will be charged for doing so. 8 – Are you a member of any professional body? There are several professional bodies that may belong to a financial advisor. These include the Personal Finance Society (PFS) and the Institute of Financial Planning (IFP). Become a member of a professional body would mean that the adviser has committed to follow the code of professional ethics and they may try to increase the level of professional qualification. 9 – What is your advice will be focused in one area or will it be a complete review? You may or may not require a complete review of your financial position. Some people seek financial advice to just get recommendations on one particular aspect of their financial lives. Our own company offers two services – is focused financial solutions for people who need advice on one or maybe two areas of finance, and wealth management solutions for people who need a holistic financial planning review. Define exactly what your financial advisor offering their recommendations in terms of coverage. 10 – How will you keep me up to date with changes in the world of financial planning? At the very minimum the IFA must offer you a periodic newsletter to keep up-to-date with financial news and developments. You should also find out of they have an informative website and a blog with regular updates on the different areas of financial planning. Remember that choosing a financial advisor rather than a lifelong commitment, but because of the nature of their decisions will help you to create, you must make sure that you ask these important questions and feel comfortable with the answers.