Financial Advice – 3 reasons why it pays to speak to an expert

We all need a little help now and again. You’ll probably go to different people depending on the help you need.

Our recent survey showed that lots of people turn to loved ones for advice on money. In fact, just under half of the people we asked said they’d speak to someone they know for advice on their finances.

We all have important financial decisions to make throughout our lives. But you could argue our decisions become more important as we get older. Decisions around things like retirement shouldn’t be taken lightly, and it can help to have a second opinion.

Time to think about getting financial advice?

Only 8% of the people we surveyed said they’d look for professional advice. That means over 90% are going to unqualified people to help them make potentially life-changing, financial decisions.

While friends and family will do their best to help, they can have an emotional bias. They’ll also usually lack the qualifications and experience of a professional financial adviser, so might not be the best place to turn to when making important financial decisions.

Relying solely on informal chats with your friends to make financial decisions might not give you the best results.

Although there’s generally a charge for taking financial advice, you can also get free guidance from places like Pension Wise, the Money and Pensions service or Citizens Advice. This is a step up from getting help from those around you. But you still won’t get the personalised or in-depth recommendations you’d get from a financial adviser.

Here are a few reasons why you should consider speaking to the experts, and make sure you’re not being led up the garden path.

It’s not always easy to talk money

This can be especially true when going to your family for advice.

Everyone wants to see their family members doing well financially. Older members of the family who’ve ‘been there and done that’ might speak from experience to try and give you advice. But it’s likely times have changed since they needed to make the decisions you’re facing now.

Your family are also likely to be the ones you speak to at sensitive times, like after a divorce or the loss of a loved one. There’s usually financial decisions to be made at emotional moments, so it’s easy to take advice from family and friends just to get it off your plate.

Although your family will have your best interests at heart, a financial adviser is more emotionally removed. They can offer clear-minded advice that your family might not be able to. They’ll still treat your situation delicately, but by helping you make decisions, they’ll be able to take some of the emotional weight off your shoulders.

Everyone’s situation is different

Our finances are a personal subject, and it’s likely information like your salary are only known by a select few.

Because of our reluctance to share too much with our friends and family, they’ll never get the full picture. Any advice they give might not help your financial situation as much as you first thought.

A financial adviser is impartial and discrete. This lets you share more detail with confidence. With more information at their fingertips, an adviser can help you build more of a complete strategy.

Past success isn’t a measure of future success

Whether it’s advice on your career or on which car to buy, lots of the advice we give our friends is anecdotal.

The world of investing moves quickly and no one knows what’s going to happen today or tomorrow. Not even an adviser with years of experience can predict what stock markets will do next. So don’t listen to anyone who claims to know what’s around the corner.

You can’t make predictions based on past performance. Just because someone you know might have made money on an investment in the past, it doesn’t mean it’ll happen again, or that it’ll suit what’s best for you.

Instead, a financial adviser will look at your attitude to risk. They’ll also look at your finances as a whole and make sure your investments fit in with your goals to help you succeed over the long term.

This article is not personal advice. All investments can go up and down in value, so you could get back less than you put in. If you’re not sure whether an investment or course of action is right for you, seek advice.

Start the New Year right with expert advice from £495

The New Year can be a time when investors look closer at their portfolios and make changes that better fit what they need. Or even make new investments. If you’re not sure where to start, you could take advantage of our latest offer of tailored investment advice at a fixed cost of £495. Book your callback with our Advisory Helpdesk by 12 February and agree to take advice before 26 March to qualify. Terms apply – see below.

How to get started

It starts with a no-obligation callback from our Advisory Helpdesk. They won’t give you any personalised advice on the call, but they’ll help you decide if advice is right for you and answer any questions you might have. They’ll then pass your details onto one of our qualified advisers who can chat to you about your personal circumstances.

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