How we are paid
On receiving an enquiry we invite a prospective client to come to our offices for a preliminary meeting. The purpose of the meeting is firstly to establish whether we are able to assist and secondly to discuss how we would be paid for our services should we be instructed to proceed. There is no charge for this preliminary meeting and no obligation on either side.
After the initial free consultation, we will agree with you whether you pay us a fee, or we are paid out of the cost of any financial product you buy (commission). We will always tell you about any commission we earn, and whether it will be taken into account in working out our fee.
Commission is paid to an IFA firm by a provider, usually an insurance company or an investment house for any transaction carried out. The commission is included within the providers normal product charges, so there is usually nothing you need to pay us in addition. The amount of commission is based on a percentage of the premiums payable or sums invested. Alternatively, you may decide you would rather pay for your advice by way of a fee, in which case some or all of the commission may be rebated into any plans transacted on your behalf.
Fees will be based on time spent and evaluated at a rate per hour calculated to recover our costs or as a percentage of premiums, investment or mortgage arranged.
If you ask us to arrange a mortgage for you, our fee for mortgage advice will typically be 0.5% of the loan for full status mortgages. For example, a straight forward mortgage of £100,000 would typically incur a fee of £500.
Whether we take our remuneration by way of commission , fees or combination of both, will be a matter of discussion and agreement, and no charges or fees will be made without prior notification in writing.