People looking to get financial advice need to “shop around” if they don’t want to be hit by high costs, a survey by reviewing service Which? has found.
According to the consumer group, which talked to 108 financial advisers in the UK regarding different client situations, the difference between the cheapest and most expensive advisers can be very significant.
Case studies
In the first instance, a client had a £150,000 ($181,869, €163,782) pension pot, £100,000 in savings and the same amount in an Isa.
The cheapest quote for financial advice was £500, the most expensive £5,000 and the average cost was £2,540.
Second, advisers were presented with a parent on how to pay for university education, with the help of £60,000 in savings and £40,000 invested in stocks and shares.
For this scenario, quotes ranged between £300 and £2,500, with an average of £1,060.
In the last case study, IFAs were to advise a 50-year-old home owner wishing to invest a £100,000 inheritance.
Financial advice costs went from £500 to £3,000, averaging on £1,980.
Look around first
But how do advisers come up with their quotes?
Nearly 70% said they based their charges according to the amount of money they were asked to manage.
Among the respondents, 60% said they charged a flat fee, and 6% admitted to charging an hourly fee – the amounts of those fees were not disclosed.
Which? said: “The amount you’ll pay for financial advice can vary hugely, too. We surveyed 108 financial advisers across the UK to see what they would charge in a range of scenarios.
“Typically, our hypothetical clients would pay around £1,000 to £2,500, but some quotes were far higher.
“As many advisers don’t publish information about their fees, you’ll need to shop around and speak to a few different advisers before hiring someone to make sure you’re getting good value.”
