Mystery Shopper: Colchester

The shopper is looking into inheritance tax planning, setting up a will and taking out critical illness cover. She has just found out there is a history of breast cancer in her family and as she is a single mother she wants to ensure her two young children are protected should anything happen to her. She owns two properties and is paying off both mortgages, with the first worth £250,000 and the other £350,000. She wants to leave the properties to her children as tax efficiently as possible.

Each week the mystery shopper seeks advice from independent advisers in the UK. The aim is to find out whether advisers are delivering the goods when it comes to the all-important initial telephone contact between client and adviser. It is only intended to evaluate this first interview, and it is understood that further meetings would be necessary before final decisions could be made. The purpose is not to expose poor selling practices, but to show constructively any weaknesses in the advice process.

Adviser: Scrutton Bland Financial Services (Independent)

Address: 820 The Crescent, Colchester Business Park, Colchester, Essex, CO4 9YQ

Speed of response: The shopper was transferred to an adviser quickly. 5/5

Telephone manner: Polite and professional. 5/5

Relevant qualifications: DipFA. 5/5

Payment method: The adviser said the initial meeting was free, after which an hourly fee would apply. He explained the company did not work on a commission basis because its aim was to charge clients only for the time spent with them. But he was not able to give a range, as the quote would be established upon further information provided in the meeting. 4/5

Guidance: The adviser said they would first have to establish what level of IHT would be due on the shopper's estate, and to evaluate the cost of protecting the estate against the IHT burden, alongside some CI cover. The adviser also noted that as he dealt with protection queries only, the shopper would first speak to another adviser in the company specialising in IHT and estate planning. Then, once a clearer picture of her objectives was gathered – and whether there would be any IHT issues – they could consider together the most cost-effective protection solution. He added that setting up a will was an important first step and as they had a number of relationships with solicitors could help sort this out too. 5/5

Knowledge: The adviser explained stand-alone CI policies were rare; most providers include life insurance as a whole package and it is possible to cover IHT and protection in the one plan with a life insurance policy and/or trust. In this respect, he explained it was a two-pronged effort, working out cheaper in the long-term. He also explained that a life insurance policy would not increase the size of her estate; that it was possible to move assets around to avoid a big IHT burden. However, he required some prompting for further information, and the shopper felt she had to ask several questions for more details. 3/5

Website: https://www.scruttonbland.co.uk/

Email: tim.bell@scruttonbland.co.uk 5/5

Verdict: The adviser was professional and friendly, he gave a solid description of the payment method, good guidance of the process involved, and demonstrated sound knowledge of the different protections and IHT-efficient strategies available. But he could not give a range of the costs involved and needed some additional prompting.

32/35

Adviser: Blue Square Financial (Independent)

Address: 20 Sir Isaacs Walk, Essex, Colchester, CO1 1JJ

Speed of response: Adviser answered the phone. 5/5

Telephone manner: Polite and professional. 5/5

Relevant qualifications: The adviser said he was a qualified mortgage adviser and broker only, but was in training to gain his full qualification in financial advice. He explained the shopper could, however, speak to another adviser in the company with a full diploma in financial planning, if she wished. 4/5

Payment method: Initial consultation was free, after which a commission-based fee would apply, depending on the policy taken out. He could not give a range. There would also be a one-off fee of £150 for the writing of a will. 4/5

Guidance: The adviser said there could be several different approaches, and this could be looked at in an initial sit-down meeting. The amount of CI cover would depend on how much the shopper wanted to be covered for. He was, however, quite reluctant to give more details without more information and needed several prompts to explain further. 3/5

Knowledge: The adviser explained a few basic IHT facts, such as the £325,000 cap on tax-free inheritance per person before being exposed to up to 40 per cent IHT on the remaining assets. He added that if her combined estate was bigger than that, advice was definitely something worth looking into. He could not provide any more details without having more information about the shopper and offered to schedule a meeting. 3/5

Website: https://bluesquarefinancial.com/

Email: mitch@bluesquarefinancial.com 5/5

Verdict: The adviser gave a good description of what was involved in the process, he sounded knowledgeable and was able to give the shopper some description of the common issues with IHT and benefits of having some form of protection, but needed a fair bit of prompting to give any more details over the phone.

29/35

Adviser: True Potential Wealth Management LLP (Independent)

Address: 50 Horsey Road, Kirby-Le-Soken, Essex, Frinton-On-Sea, CO13 0DZ

Speed of response: The adviser answered the phone. 5/5

Telephone manner: Friendly and professional. 5/5

Relevant qualifications: DipFA. 5/5

Payment method: The adviser said the initial face-to-face meeting would be free of charge. As he works from home, the meeting would be a house call. If it were an investment, he explained the fee would be 3 per cent of the initial fee, and then a 1 per cent ongoing annual fee. Otherwise, if it was just a policy, it would be a commission from the provider chosen. But he could not give a range. Also, if she was after a will, this would cost around £100, dependent on the straightforwardness of the estate planning. 4/5

Guidance: The adviser said the most cost-effective solution would be chosen from a spreadsheet of the different providers and their products unless there was something specific she wanted to be covered, which could then warrant further research into the different products. He suggested a will was an important first step, and given she wanted to protect her children's future assets, it might be slightly more complex to draw up. He also warned the shopper to check all independent financial advisers' names on the Financial Conduct Authority's register, warning her of some unscrupulous practices, which the shopper found genuine, kind and helpful. 5/5

Knowledge: The adviser showed good knowledge of IHT and the challenges and initial steps involved in cost-effective estate planning, as well as the types of cover available and the interlinked relationship between the two. 4/5

Website: https://www.tpllp.com/

Email: alexshang-simpson@tpllp.com 5/5

Verdict: The adviser showed some knowledge of the situation and gave some good advice, but could not give any more details over the phone and suggested organising a face-to-face meeting. The adviser required some prompting, and the shopper felt as though she had to keep coming back to some of her questions to get a full answer, but nevertheless he was extremely polite and genuine. 

33/35

Adviser: Optimum Independent Financial Advisers (Independent)

Address: 8-9 St Peters Court, Middleborough, Essex, Colchester, CO1 1WD

Speed of response: The shopper was transferred to an adviser within seconds. 5/5

Telephone manner: Extremely friendly, polite and professional. 5/5

Relevant qualifications: Level four CF30. 5/5

Payment method: The cost would very much depend on what would be involved. For example, if she was looking for investment-based advice, there would be a one-off fee; but if it was a protection-based policy, then it would be a commission. However, he could not give a range without more information. 4/5

Guidance: He said it was important to first look at what the shopper was trying to achieve so that he could make recommendations. He said a discussion in a meeting would involve the shopper’s objectives, and that they would conduct an assessment of her estate’s IHT position and the different types of protection policies and trust solutions available. He said everything needed to be joined up and it was extremely important for her to feel comfortable with the adviser she ended up speaking to once she booked a consultation, suggesting that a long-term relationship with an adviser would be key to ensuring her children's assets be passed on in the most tax-efficient manner. 5/5

Knowledge: The adviser said it was important to think of tax and protection as a joined up process; the worst thing to do would be to try and do it in bits and pieces. He added that will planning was another important factor, and they could gel those two things together for her by liaising with a solicitor. 5/5

Website: https://optimum-ifa.co.uk/

Email: gary@optimum-IFA.co.uk 5/5

Verdict: Shopper’s choice: The adviser spoke confidently and reassuringly. He was helpful and demonstrated a good understanding of the issues and shopper’s concerns. He also suggested she consider and shop around for other advisers before making a decision. This was the shopper’s choice, on the basis that his manner was open and friendly, and he required the least amount of prompting compared to the others.

34/35