Advice
If you visit a bank or building society when trying to arrange loans or mortgages, you should be aware that the ‘advisor’ you meet is not independent and will only be able to recommend products provided by his or her employer. These may not be the most cost-effective products in the market-place, they may not be to most suitable to your needs, but they are the only ones that they can offer.
Similarly, most banks and building societies do not offer advice on products but, instead, offer you assistance in choosing that which is most suitable from their range. As a result, because products are sold on a ‘non-advised’ basis, you could find yourself in the position of having a product that does meet your actual needs, but without the means effectively to complain.
If you telephone a call centre, or visit a price-comparison web-site to arrange a loan or insurance, you will have a similar experience and not receive independent advice. There can be no certainty that the product is the most-suitable for your needs, leaving you no recourse to the Financial Ombudsman Scheme.
When deciding on mortgages, loans or insurance products, it is vital that you seek independent advice. Failure to do so could jeopardise your financial safety.
Independent advisors will take a detailed fact-find, analyse your situation and needs, work with you to find the most appropriate insurance or mortgages from the entire market, explain and justify their recommendations and answer all your questions. Independent advisors usually charge fees for their professional service but, in most cases, these fees are modest compared with the value they add and the security you gain. For our fee structure, check out our Initial Disclosure Document (IDD) or our Terms of Business.
