Money Advice Services says IFA referrals will increase
Service responds after annual review reveals just 0.3 per cent of users were referred to regulated advice.
A change in strategy at the Money Advice Service will result in significantly more users being referred to regulated financial advisers as part of a refocused, “action-oriented” strategy, the service’s service delivery director has said.
In the Mas’ most recent annual review, the organisation revealed that although one quarter of users took action based on the advice received on the site, only about 3,000 people - less than a quarter of one per cent - were referred to regulated financial advice.
Karen Broughton, marketing and service delivery director for Mas, its said that its recently-launched web tools will concentrate on providing ‘actionable’ advice to users.
Ms Broughton said: “We are trying to reach a broad spectrum of people. Our objective is to give people the best advice and point them in the right direction.”
Although there is no set goal for how many people should be referred to an adviser, Ms Broughton predicted the number being referred to regulated advice would rise as the Mas increases its focus on compelling users to take action.
She said: “We haven’t said, ‘right, we need to refer 8,000 this year’, but what we have done a lot more of is make sure we get people to take action, whatever that action may be.
“Previously it was very information based. The whole concept of the new proposition is to get people to take action.
“Do we think more people will get referred on to an IFA than they did previously? I would say yes. More people will go and do something after interacting with us than before.”