The pension adviser was excellent at explaining everything.
In the UK, financial advice must be delivered by qualified professionals, who are required to provide personal recommendations that are suitable for and in the best interests of their clients. This is different to generic information or guidance, which is not specific or tailored to individual circumstances.
Whilst you should expect a financial adviser to have a lot of technical knowledge and expertise, they can only truly help a client if they understand clearly and in detail what the client wants to achieve.
That’s why building open and honest relationships is central to what we do. Knowing when to talk, when to listen and what questions to ask is fundamental to delivering a better retirement plan for our clients.
We set everything out in a clear and accessible way, from the fees we charge to what’s happening next and how long it should take. Click here for a summary of our fees.
For everyone’s sanity, we summarise some of the more complex aspects of financial instruments and how they work. We are always happy to go into as much detail as you want, though.
One of the first things we assess is whether you will get value for money by using our services once fees have been taken into account.
The retirement plan we then create with you will focus on getting maximum value for the money you have invested and how those investments are structured. This includes a tax-efficient and sustainable strategy for taking an income.
Pension sense is a dedicated team working for you every step of the way.
A 30-minute phone or video conversation with one of our advisers so you can decide if financial advice is right for you and we can make an initial assessment on how you could benefit from it. This is free of charge, and there is no obligation.
If you want to go ahead with our service, we will send you our terms of business and a form to complete, giving us permission to gather important information about your pensions, investments and other financial products.
We gather all the technical data and personal information we need to properly assess your situation and recommend for you a tailored retirement plan. This includes a phone or video appointment with you, supported by digital tools and a secure portal.
Supported by a technical team, your adviser will explore in depth if and how your financial arrangements could be improved to help you meet your goals. Draft recommendations are refined through internal review before we are ready to present.
We will send you a report reflecting our recommendations and any amendments discussed. If you decide to go ahead, simply sign and return the enclosed forms.
We will then liaise with product provider(s) to set everything up for you and make any changes to your existing plans as agreed.
If you opt for our ongoing management service, we will monitor your retirement plan to make sure it remains tailored to you. This includes annual reviews, ongoing risk assessment, income projections, performance monitoring, regular or ad hoc withdrawals and support with tax and legacy planning.
Your initial adviser conversation is free of charge. If you decide to proceed, you commit to paying a fee of £100. This will be offset against the cost of our recommendation and implementation fee if you choose to go ahead with our full advice. If you decide not to go ahead, we will invoice you for the £100.
If you agree with our recommendations and ask us to implement them, the fee is based on the value of your pensions and investments on a tiered scale:
First £250,000 3%
Amounts from £250,000 - £500,000 2%
Amounts from £500,000 - £1m 1%
Amounts from £1m 0.5%
In most cases, we can take this fee directly from your pension rather than a separate invoice being sent.
If you opt for our ongoing management service, the charge is 1% of the value of your pension and investment assets deducted at a rate of 1/12th of 1% each month. You can choose to remove this service at any point.
It could be the start of your journey towards a more secure retirement
