Even as read a lot of articles every week on a wide variety of subjects, a very common one that keeps on coming up is the dreadful trustworthiness of the banks.
Again and again we read of the banks’ sales guys selling products that are totally improper to naive customers.
Which? Journal has recently carried out research on this very subject سرمایه گذاری مدیریت ثروت LFC. In an undercover probe, researchers found that just 4 out of 37 twigs of banks and building organizations gave helpful advice about investing a lump sum.
Think about this. Imagine a similar probe were to be carried out on doctors and dentists, and the findings were that nearly 90% of them were totally failing their patients. There would be a massive outcry!
Yet, week in week out, it’s been going on with the banks for many, many years. It is worth remembering of course that these sales guys are under enormous pressure to sell sell sell.
It is a culture thing. When a bank decides to launch a product, you could be led to believe that the only thing they are concerned about is what kind of money they can make from it, and how much of this product can they sell to you.
Taking an example here of dreadful advice, an impartial mechanic in Liverpool recently went into battle for a client against a bank. What had they done? Well, how about this…
The client was 66 yoa, had £300, 000 to invest (which he previously recently inherited), and stressed he was a low risk investor.
So what did the banks ‘adviser’ recommend? The whole amount was put into a property fund. Yes, the whole amount! Of course, what happened was that the fund was lost to similar to £190, 000 over the following a couple of years!
This lead in a very worried and confused pensioner.
The good news is that the independent mechanic took this to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which ordered the bank to consider its position over the criticism. As a result, the bank compensated the investor.
What this shows is that it is vital to deal with an mechanic who is not only independent, but NEUTRAL.
The only way that this can happen is that you choose an mechanic who works for you and not the product provider. This means saying yes to pay fees, rather than commission.
So by paying for advice, even as constantly find with your medics and dentists, it could well be that settling debt, spending or gifting more is the correct solution!
For the banks of course, fees frighten them. They are accustomed to selling products, it is a huge ask for them to see the error of their ways. After all, if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
With a Fee based Planner who has a complete tool set, you can be rest assured that they’re going to work with and for you to achieve your goals in life.
The Financial Tips Bottom line
Make sure that if you use an mechanic, they are not only independent, but neutral. This means they charge a fee to give you advice on creating a strategy for life.
Products come a faraway second!
ACTION POINT
If you have used a bank for advice now or in the past, it really is worth reviewing any products you will probably have been sold, as well as your overall position.