Frequently asked questions

There’s nothing to pay for an initial meeting with an adviser

Before you speak to an adviser, our advisory helpdesk will talk you through how advice works and the costs involved. After the call, if you decide you’d like to find out more, they’ll put you in touch with an adviser.

You don’t have to pay when you first meet or speak to your adviser. At this point, we’re still getting to know you, finding out about your objectives and how we might help. If it takes more than one conversation or meeting to understand this, these will still be free. Please be aware that you won’t get any personal financial advice or recommendations as part of these preliminary discussions.

You’ll only pay if you decide to take financial advice by signing a charges agreement. But your adviser will make sure you know what the charges are first.

Our charges are percentage based. We charge 1-2% depending on the value of the investments we’re advising on and the type of advice we’re providing.

We have a minimum charge of £495 for telephone advice and £1,495 for face-to-face advice.

VAT is added where applicable.

A full breakdown of how much we charge for investment advice and financial planning advice can be found on our charges page. But the charges will always be clarified with an adviser before you take advice.

Our financial advice can be shaped around your needs. You can either speak to an adviser over the phone, via video call or face-to-face.

We have advisers all over the country and we’ll arrange for you to speak to an adviser in your region.

We understand that it’s important for your advice to be convenient but also that you develop a good professional relationship with your adviser. So your choice of location or communication method is entirely down to what you feel most comfortable with.

All advisers must have a diploma in financial planning (or equivalent) which is recognised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and complete training and development each year to keep their knowledge up to date. At HL, many of our advisers also have additional qualifications such as advanced diplomas in financial planning.

The majority of our financial advisers’ qualifications are awarded by the Chartered Institute of Insurers (CII) and they’re members of the Personal Finance Society (PFS).

Some of our financial advisers have additional qualifications in areas such as estate planning and long-term care.

Our advisers can help you pass on your wealth in an easy to manage and tax efficient way. However, they’re not tax advisers so your adviser may refer you to a tax accountant for complex tax calculations.

Estate planning can be beneficial to do with those close to you. So, whether that’s your spouse or another close family member, it can be a good idea they’re involved throughout your discussions about inheritance and estate planning.

Visit our estate planning and inheritance tax page for more information.

We can help you make the most of any cash or investments you inherit, but we aren’t able to advise you about physical assets such as property or other valuable items such as art, antiques or jewellery.

Inheriting cash or investments can be complex and sometimes the transfer isn’t straightforward. Your adviser will help guide you through the process.

Our advice service can be split into two broad categories. Investment advice and financial planning advice.

But covered under those services are advice on more specific financial goals. Visit our dedicated pages to find out more.

Retirement advice

Inheritance tax advice

Long term care advice

Pension and investment consolidation

Remember, if you’d like advice on something specific and are not looking for the full advice service, it still helps to tell your adviser about your wider plans.