At the end of each one are some ideas on how financial advisers can offer the best support to their customers, whether or not they face similar situations.
Case study A: Brian
Brian is a 62-year-old retiree, with three adult children who all live abroad. His wife, Maureen, died six months ago.
Maureen was the sole breadwinner and took responsibility for the finances within the household. Maureen left Brian a substantial life insurance policy, as well as a spousal pension.
While Brian has adequate financial resources, he does not possess any knowledge or experience when it comes to financial services.
Brian will be vulnerable for a number of reasons. It is reasonable to expect that his grief is likely to hinder his ability to make financial decisions.
As he has never had to budget in the past, Brian will also need help assessing whether the household income and his assets are sufficient to maintain his lifestyle and support him throughout the rest of his life.
Support
There are several ways to support Brian. First, any financial advice offered to him should be spread over a number of meetings, to allow him sufficient time to reflect on what was discussed and his preferred course of action.
Brian should also be given the opportunity to have a relative or close friend accompany him to any financial meetings to provide additional support, from taking down notes for him to asking questions Brian may not have had the time nor inclination to prepare.
Additionally, extra care should be taken when completing any budget planner with Brian.
He may not be fully aware of the costs associated with running the household, so he should be encouraged to seek information regarding specific costs.
Case study B: Ananya
Ananya has recently relocated from India to the UK to work in the family business. She is 19 years old and has a very basic understanding of the English language.
As a result of being brought up in a very remote area in India that required her to work on a local farm since she was a teenager, Ananya only partially completed her education.
Ananya may require a basic bank account for her wages to be paid into. However, due to Ananya’s lack of understanding of English, it could be difficult for her to access and understand financial services in the UK.
Support
If possible, advisers should also encourage Ananya to bring an English-speaking relative or friend to the meetings.
If this is not possible, the adviser could use the aid of online translator tools. However, the accuracy of these should not be relied on.
