Standard Fees
| Service | Fees |
|---|---|
| Initial meeting | No fee |
| Research and recommendation | No fee |
| Implementation | 2% of the first £100,000 you invest 1% of any amount above £100,000 A surcharge of £100 applies for investment values under £20,000 Maximum initial fee: £3,000 |
| Ongoing advice (optional) | 0.5%, 0.75% or 1% of your portfolio value per year, depending on the service you choose |
Notes
We do not levy any type of “hidden cost” (such as additional fees for valuation reports or investment switching)
We do not charge any type of exit fee or penalty
Ongoing advice fees are deducted once per month and can be cancelled at any time (subject to 14 days notice)
Such as buying an annuity, drawdown or taking a lump sum from your pension
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Initial meeting | No fee |
| Research and recommendation | No fee |
| Implementation | After deducting any tax-free lump sum: 3% of the first £100,000 of your pension 1% of any amount above £100,000 A surcharge of £100 applies for pension values under £20,000. Maximum initial fee: £4,000 for a single client or £5,000 for a couple |
| Ongoing advice (optional) | 0.5%, 0.75% or 1% of your portfolio value per year, depending on the level of service you choose |
Notes
We do not levy any type of “hidden cost” (such as additional fees for valuation reports or investment switching)
We do not charge any type of exit fee or penalty
Ongoing advice fees are deducted once per month and can be cancelled at any time (subject to 14 days notice)
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Initial meeting | No fee |
| Research and recommendation | No fee |
| Implementation fee | No fee (unless changes are required) |
| Ongoing advice (optional) | 0.5%, 0.75% or 1% of your portfolio value per year, depending on the service you choose |
Notes
We do not levy any type of “hidden cost” (such as additional fees for valuation reports or investment switching)
We do not charge any type of exit fee or penalty
Ongoing advice fees are deducted once per month and can be cancelled at any time (subject to 14 days notice)
How It Works
Initial meeting
All potential new customers will receive a free initial consultation which typically takes around one hour.
During this meeting we will explain how we work and how we charge for our services. We will also take details about your current circumstances, your goals for the future and answer any questions you might have. We must take these details in order to ensure any recommendations we make are suitable for you and to ensure we act in your best interests.
Research and recommendation
After the free initial consultation we will assess your needs at a high level and create a financial plan. We will then arrange a second meeting to discuss this plan with you.
Your adviser will confirm (after the free initial consultation and before the second meeting) whether or not a fee will be payable for the creation of your financial plan and the second meeting. A fee will not be payable in almost all cases. However, in some limited cases (where your circumstances are, in our opinion, more complex) a fee will be payable. This will be a fixed fee based on an estimate of how much time your adviser expects it will take to create your financial plan. You can choose whether or not you want your adviser to create a financial plan before you incur any fees.
If you choose not to proceed with the creation of a financial plan no fees will be payable. If you choose to proceed with the creation of a financial plan the fee (if any) will be payable at the end of your second meeting.
Implementing your financial plan
If part of your financial plan includes a recommendation to make a change to any of your current policies, or to take out a new policy, you will have an opportunity to decide how you wish to proceed after the second meeting.
If you decide not to proceed no additional fees will be payable. If you decide to proceed an Implementation Fee will be payable. This fee will be payable on the policy start date.
Our Implementation Fee is based on a percentage of your proposed policy value. The percentage varies depending on the policy type and contribution amount, as shown in the tables above.
Ongoing services
If you choose to proceed with one of our initial services you also have the option of agreeing to an ongoing service. Each of our ongoing services includes a regular financial review. This could be held annually or it could be held more frequently, depending on the complexity of your circumstances and your needs. Your adviser will confirm, in writing, exactly how often you will be invited for an investment review meeting. Our ongoing services include:
- An update about your portfolio;
- A re-assessment of your circumstances;
- An update about any relevant changes in legislation;
- A re-assessment of your attitude to risk;
- An opportunity to ask any questions you have about your investments;
- Telephone or email access to an administrator between review meetings;
- The opportunity to set up a one-off or regular withdrawal from your portfolio at any time;
- Valuation reports when requested.
- A review of the suitability of your investments, which will be confirmed in writing
For clients with larger portfolios, extra services are available at no additional cost.
Examples
Example 1: lump sum investment
Mr Jones has inherited a lump sum of £200,000 and is interested in using this money as part of his retirement planning.
He attends a meeting with one of our financial advisers which lasts around an hour. The adviser confirms his circumstances are not particularly complex and so there will be no one-off fee payable for the adviser to create a financial plan.
After the initial meeting the adviser performs research and analysis. He considers the £200,000 lump sum alongside Mr Jones’ desired level of investment risk plus his other assets and his retirement plans. He feels Mr Jones should invest £150,000 of this lump sum into a mixture of different investments. The adviser prepares a recommendation accordingly and asks Mr Jones to attend a follow-up meeting.
In the second meeting the adviser presents his recommendations to Mr Jones in writing. Mr Jones is encouraged to ask questions. The adviser explains the initial fee payable to implement the recommendations is £2,500. This is calculated as 2% of the first £100,000 and 1% of the next £50,000. The adviser confirms the recommended investments do not have any other initial charges and do not have any minimum term or exit charge. The adviser encourages Mr Jones to take the written recommendation away to consider before making a final decision. This second meeting lasts around one hour.
After the second meeting Mr Jones calls the adviser and explains that he would like to proceed with the recommendation. A final meeting is arranged. During the final meeting Mr Jones signs the required paperwork to set up the investments. He chooses to pay our £2,500 initial fee by cheque rather than deducting it from the planned investment amount. He writes a cheque (or makes a bank transfer) to our company for £2,500 and makes a separate payment direct to the investment provider for £150,000.
Example 2: taking retirement benefits
Mrs Williams has built up several personal pensions over her career and is now nearing retirement. The total value of her pension pots is £100,000.
She attends a meeting with one of our financial advisers which lasts around an hour. The adviser confirms her circumstances are not particularly complex and so there will be no one-off fee payable for the adviser to create a financial plan.
After the initial meeting the adviser performs research and analysis. He considers the £100,000 pension pots alongside Mrs Williams’ desired level of investment risk plus her other assets and her retirement plans. The adviser believes Mrs Williams should take 25% of her pension as a tax-free lump sum and use Flexi Access Drawdown to fund her retirement plans.
He contacts the pension schemes and find none of them offer this option. He also finds out various other details about the schemes including whether or not they have any special features which could benefit Mrs Williams. After completing this analysis the adviser believes she should move her pension pots to a new pension provider which offers Flexi Access Drawdown and he performs research to select a new provider which will suit Mrs Williams’ needs. The adviser prepares a recommendation accordingly and asks Mrs Williams to attend a follow-up meeting.
In the second meeting the adviser presents his recommendations to Mrs Williams in writing. Mrs Williams is encouraged to ask questions. The adviser explains the initial fee payable to implement the recommendations is £2,250. This is calculated as 3% of £75,000 (which is the remaining pension values after deducting the 25% tax-free lump sum). The adviser confirms the new recommended pension provider does not have any other initial charges and does not have any minimum term or exit charge. The adviser encourages Mrs Williams to take the written recommendation away to consider before making a final decision. This second meeting lasts around one hour.
After the second meeting Mrs Williams calls the adviser and explains that she would like to proceed with the recommendation. A final meeting is arranged. During the final meeting Mrs Williams signs the required paperwork to set up the investments. She chooses to pay our £2,250 initial fee by deducting it from the new pension policy. The old pension policies are paid into the new policy then Mrs Williams receives her tax-free lump sum and our company receives our initial fee. Shortly afterwards Mrs Williams starts to receive a drawdown income so she can enjoy her retirement.
