Once you have identified your Goals, it is time to discover how to best go about achieving those goals. The financial services sector is a complicated business, and there are few people who might be expected to browse its murky waters without assistance. Perhaps the most important Decision you can make when considering buying any financial service or product is your decision on the sort of advice that you will seek out. This is a place where some maintenance is required. As complicated as the financial services sector is, so too are the connections of people working inside, and you need to be certain you realize the connection between the person giving you guidance and the product they are advising you on.
Always remember that the Main goal of such Eduardo Gonzalez advice would be to help identify what your needs are, to not encourage you to buy certain products. It might be the best advice would be to do nothing. At times, an adviser will seem to go to a lot of trouble for your benefit, in the hopes of encouraging you to feel obliged to stay together always remember you can say NO. The rights you are entitled to in receiving advice vary based on the sort of product. Check with the proper independent authority as defined in a variety of places in this manual and in the Useful Information section as to what your rights are with respect to a given product.
If you choose to buy a product without seeking advice, your rights are often less than they could be otherwise. Sometimes, the attitude is ‘you did not look for advice, so it is your own fault’. While it could be appropriate in certain instances to go it alone, getting good information is always worth the investment. Adviser acts as a filter, discarding poorly performing or sub-standard goods and focusing on the goods which do perform. When considering what information to Take, always establish what the point-of-view of your adviser is, and how that will influence the sort of information they give.
You pay advisers in one of three ways: a one-off fee, a commission on any products purchased, or a combination of both. Always establish from the beginning what the deal is. The Financial Services Authority has decreed that from late 2003 all independent financial services must allow you to cover them with a flat fee if you would like to. This eliminates the temptation to recommend something that pays them better commission. Finally, it is always worth Asking whether the advisor is going to be ready to take a cut in their commission so as to provide you a much better deal known as a ‘commission sacrifice’. They would not always agree, but if you do not request you would not get. Occasionally they will consider it worthwhile so as to receive your custom.
