Seeking Financial Advice

Since the introduction of the Financial Services Act in 1986, strict regulations have been introduced. These are designed to protect the investor against bad advice and are constantly being reviewed. No longer will a salesman be authorised to sell you unsuitable products and if you feel that you have been misled, there are a number of options open to you. These range from a local complaint against the individual concerned, to his superiors, to the Insurance Company itself, after which the regulatory body and finally, the Insurance Ombudsman. Before any advice is offered, full details of your needs and requirements should be obtained and any subsequent suggestions confirmed in writing. These rules apply equally to both Insurance Company representatives and Independent Financial Advisers. An Insurance Company Representative can only advise you on his own company's products and is not allowed to comment on other companies plans. An Independent Financial Advisor (IFA) should have the whole market at his fingertips in order to steer you through the maze of products on offer.

The main concern of many young married couples is usually how to finance the purchase of property and if you are intending to make such a purchase, you will need to compare the various mortgage terms on offer. A bank or building society will only give you details of their own products and it could prove to be quite an onerous task to gather information from numerous Financial Institutions.

The mortgage market changes weekly and you need to obtain qualified advice on the best terms available at any one time, plus the cheapest way to provide Life Assurance cover over the term of the mortgage.

There will be several Company Representatives and IFA's near to you and each should be equally qualified to offer sound advice within their terms of reference. Most do not charge any fees, since their time is paid for by the Insurance Companies who pay them commission on business introduced. Such commission forms part of the overall expense in running an insurance contract and it cannot be saved by a person going directly to the company.

Financial Advice Suppliers