Financial Advisor articles from January 2006

Financial Advisor archives from January 2006

Deloitte charts expanding gap.
January 5, 2006... THE pensions black hole for the UK's FTSE 100 companies rose by AGBP10bn in 2005, according to a new study. Actuaries at Deloitte & Touche estimate that the final salary pension plan of FTSE 100 companies now stands at a AGBP75bn deficit....

Goal aiming to ease reclaiming.
January 5, 2006... A NEW online service from tax solutions provider Goal will help IFAs recover overseas tax on behalf of their clients. EReclaim will help IFAs and their clients recover some of the tax imposed by foreign governments on cross-border dividend...

IFP to bolster web education.
January 5, 2006... THE Institute of Financial Planning has signed an agreement to incorporate PlanPlus for Students, a web-based financial planning software package, into its educational materials. PlanPlus for Students, a Canadian piece of software, provides...

FSA to focus on EU legislation.
January 5, 2006... IMPLEMENTATION of European Union financial services legislation will dominate the FSA's agenda at the start of this year. Robin Gordon-Walker, press officer for the FSA, said the industry could look forward to consultation papers on the...

John Scott hits acquisition trail.
January 5, 2006... JOHN Scott & Partners has snapped up Towry Law for AGBP37m and plans to buy a further two to three companies this year. Just before Christmas, the fee-based wealth management group, which is owned by private equity funds managed by Palamon...

Pension form to cut transfer delays -- ABI.
January 5, 2006... PENSION transfers should take less than two weeks if advisers fill in a new form, the ABI has said. On 3 January, the Association of British Insurers published a new statement of good practice on pension maturities and a pension transfer...

Money Works advisers attack charges.
January 5, 2006... PROVIDERS have come under fire after IFAs were billed for client mortgage information. Mathew Coppard, IFA for Money Works UK in Norwich, said mortgage lender Capital Home Loans tried to charge him AGBP60 for information on the balance of...

New Product - Nationwide in 10% promise.
January 5, 2006... NATIONWIDE has launched a tranche of its guaranteed equity bond linked to the performance of the FTSE 100, Nikkei 225 and DJ Eurostoxx 50 indices. The five-year bond guarantees to return 10 per cent growth on top of the original investment...

Umpire out to help Leeds' homeless.
January 5, 2006... Umpiring legend Dickie Bird has lent a hand to Leeds Building Society's bid to help the city's homeless. Branches of the society have been selling wristbands in aid of St George's Crypt -- a centre for disadvantaged people since 1930 --...

English Mutual backs run.
January 5, 2006... MORE than 400 runners, sponsored by IFA group English Mutual, took to Worcester Racecourse to raise money for charity. The three-and-a-half mile Christmas fun run bagged more than AGBP10,000 for Leukaemia Care and attracted national TV...

PPF tempers AGBP575m levy with incentive to cut risks.
January 5, 2006... THE Pension Protection Fund has announced that it intends to impose a AGBP575m levy on businesses to protect against default. The industry expected a higher charge but was still unhappy that the fee represents nearly double the original...

Thinc puts outsourcing in spotlight.
January 5, 2006... Distributor Thinc Destini, has employed Capita to undertake an evaluation exercise on the feasibility of outsourcing some of its support functions. Capita, the London-based support services company, will assess operational activity,...

FSA calling on networks to rein in representatives.
January 5, 2006... NETWORKS must improve their control over their appointed representatives, the FSA has warned. Alison Hewitt, head of department for the retail firms division of the FSA, said it expected networks to apply controls on their appointed...

NU cutting premiums as Revenue clarifies tax rules.
January 5, 2006... NORWICH Union has reduced premiums across its protection range following clarification on the taxation of life companies from HM Customs & Revenue. Norwich Union received confirmation from the Revenue that it could treat accelerated...

Threesixty discovers the golden guidelines.
January 5, 2006... IFA success can be achieved by simply following three key guidelines, according to Threesixty. Research commissioned by the fee-based IFA support services provider revealed the three dominant recurring themes employed by the most...

LiverVic pledges to tackle shortfall fears.(Liverpool Victoria)(Brief Article)
January 5, 2006... LIVERPOOL Victoria is writing to all of its low-cost mortgage endowment policyholders individually to guarantee its products will not leave shortfalls. The mutual sought to reassure 5500 policyholders with the guarantee that unequivocally...

Scottish BS sees way to spread safety message.(Scottish Building Society, Portree Primary School )(Brief Article)
January 5, 2006... Children at Portree Primary School on the Isle of Skye will be clearly visible when crossing the road this winter thanks to the Scottish Building Society and its agent Skye Property Centre. A cheque for AGBP621.50 made out to the primary...

New Product - Winterthur offers 'well thought-out' investment bond option.
January 5, 2006... WINTERTHUR Life has launched a probate trust to complement its existing range of trusts for use with its investment bond. The investment bond, which can be arranged on up to four lives assured, gives investors the option of placing their...

Scot Life is game for A-Day.
January 5, 2006... SCOTTISH Life has launched an online snakes and ladders game designed to help IFAs increase their understanding of A-Day. The game has been designed to link to other areas of the website, which can be found at www.scottishlife.co.uk/aday...

New Product - Smith & Williamson service aims to aid advice for VCTs.
January 5, 2006... SMITH & Williamson's Tax Efficient Solutions arm has launched an online service for VCT investors, called Taxsolved. It will give users an introduction to VCT rules and details of products, according to Smith & Williamson. Offers will...

Eq Life escapees to be denied cash.
January 5, 2006... EQUITABLE Life policyholders who transferred to Standard Life's with profits annuity will not reap the rewards of demutualisation, the two insurers have confirmed. In letters to Andrew Gait, an IFA for Newport-based Kilsby Williams &...

Principality reaches for top.
January 5, 2006... Peter Griffiths, chief executive of Principality Building Society, will tackle the dizzying heights of Mount Kilimanjaro in a New Year challenge to raise AGBP20,000 for the NSPCC in Wales. The gruelling five-day, 20,000 foot ascent, which...

New Product - Advantage cuts rates on its SPML-funded fixed-rate range.
January 5, 2006... ADVANTAGE Home Loans, the branded mortgage arranger, has reduced rates on its SPML-funded S500 two- and three-year fixed-rate products. Two-year fixed rates have been reduced by 0.15 of a percentage point while three-year fixed rates have...

EOC praises Turner plan to curb mis-selling threat.
January 5, 2006... Advisers will face fewer misselling claims under the Pensions Commission's proposed state-run system for private pensions, according to the Equal Opportunities Commission. Christina Barnes, policy officer for the EOC, welcomed Adair...

Word on the street is vital to customers -- GMAC-RFC.
January 5, 2006... PERSONAL recommendations are far more important than advertisements when it comes to choosing a mortgage intermediary, according to GMAC-RFC. Research by the lender revealed that a personal recommendation prompted 9 per cent of customers...

SL plugs Sipp gap with A-Day webcasts.(Standard Life Assurance Co. )(Brief Article)
January 5, 2006... STANDARD Life is to launch a series of webcasts for advisers that will focus on the opportunities created by A-Day. The Edinburgh-based mutual society is planning up to six webcasts in the run-up to A-Day, all hosted by John Lawson, head of...

Online business to dominate within two years, says survey.
January 5, 2006... MORE than three-quarters of mortgage intermediaries expect the majority of their business to be conducted electronically within the next two years. This is according to a survey by Vertex Financial Services and Trigold, which found 76 per...

IFAs bullish over FTSE moves in 2006.
January 5, 2006... IFAS are more bullish than fund managers about the FTSE's prospects in 2006, a poll has revealed. A joint survey by IFA Promotion and the Association of Investment Trust Companies revealed both IFAs and fund managers were optimistic about...

New Product - Abbey offers an 'attractive' bond.
January 5, 2006... ABBEY has launched its seventh guaranteed income bond investment. The single premium life insurance plan offers both protection of capital and a guaranteed fixed income of 3.8 per cent a year over the next four years. If the income is taken...

Finance firms 'well prepared' for attack.
January 5, 2006... THE FINANCIAL services industry is prepared for terrorist attacks and does not need prescriptive rules on how to cope with catastrophes, according to the FSA. The regulator's survey of the financial services sector's ability to cope with...

Ramp up annuities advice, argues ABI.
January 5, 2006... ANNUITIES advice needs to be extended to encourage more people to shop around for the best deal, the ABI has revealed. In a 12-page report -- entitled Annuities: Bonus of Burden? -- the Association of British Insurers argued that advice was...

AITC warns of 'devil in details' for Brown's Reits.
January 5, 2006... THE publication of draft legislation on real estate investment trusts has met with muted approval, according to industry insiders. The Association of Investment Trust Companies welcomed the introduction of the scheme as a way of encouraging...

Liquidity to impact on rentals -- RICS.
January 5, 2006... THE INTRODUCTION of Reits could lead to greater liquidity in the housing market, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. The professional body also said that the scheme could lead to higher rental prices with the...

Reits in wraps will recquire rule revisions, warns Pima.
January 5, 2006... The government's confirmation that real estate investment trusts will be available through Isa tax wrappers will trigger regulatory changes, according to Pima. The Pep and Isa Managers' Association said that modifications would need to be...

Fos under attack over handling of complaint.
January 5, 2006... An adviser has accused the Financial Services Ombudsman of ignoring the requirements of the armed forces in its dealings with complaints about deferred house purchases. Brian Pickering, of Wiltshire-based IFA Heather, Moor & Edgecomb, was...

Scot Life calls for cash back.(Scottish Life Assurance Co.)(Brief Article)
January 5, 2006... SIMPLYBIZ IFAs have criticised Scottish Life after the insurer requested back the cash it wrongly paid out to pension investors. The Huddersfield-based IFA services provider said a number of its 2400 intermediaries had been told by the...

UK set to catch up with global structures.
January 5, 2006... THE UK government is following on the heels of a recent global trend towards advancing the Reit as a property investment structure. Since 2000, France, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong have all introduced legislation introducing...

BM Solutions pushes for electronic record-keeping.
January 5, 2006... INTERMEDIARIES are not using technology to log details despite FSA warnings over incomplete records, according to BM Solutions. Research undertaken by the provider found less than half of intermediaries recognised the potential of...

Sesame Select delay increases cost for IFA.
January 5, 2006... REGULATORY delays in processing applications to join Sesame Select could result in advisers having to pay more fees than expected, according to an IFA. Robert Goodman, principal of Harrow-based IFA Robert Goodman Associates, said he had...

The company may change but the mission remains the same.
January 5, 2006... FINANCIAL ADVISER: This is a new project for you. How do you intend to make an impact within the group and take the business forward? MICHAEL BOLTON: I cannot say how different the new business will be because, as it is well known, I cannot...

Let us resolve to come clean with customers.
January 5, 2006... A NEW year, the chance for new beginnings -- but a stack of old problems still waiting to be solved. So here, in no particular order, are some of the things I would like to see happen this year to make the financial world simpler and...

Trying our best not to wake hibernating bears.
January 5, 2006... LAST year proved to be a good one for investors with the stock market powering ahead. At the end of 2004, the FTSE 100 stood at 4814 but, by December, it was consistently trading about 5500, an increase of more than 14 per cent. But...

Do not be shy about coming forward.
January 5, 2006... THANKS to those of you who emailed after I queried as to why some advisers never seem to speak to the press. Many who contacted me were small advisers who seemed to think that we would not be interested in their thoughts and views. Nothing...

BBB looking to unify to fend off FSA.
January 5, 2006... BERKELEY Berry Birch bosses are to seek shareholder support for plans to save the group from FSA-enforced closure. At an extraordinary general meeting to be held on 9 January, the group will ask for shareholder approval for plans to combine...

Red card for Scrooge.
January 5, 2006... AS we enter 2006, staff in the Chelsea Building Society press office are hoping Jeremy Hicks, assistant general manager of communications, will cheer up and drop the Scrooge routine. Mr Hicks' co-workers Vicki O'Connell and Susie Ratcliffe...

The art of financial services.
January 5, 2006... SOME advisers could be accused of being a touch on the dull side when it comes to financial services. But MLP Private Finance has given its members the opportunity to unleash their creative flair that lies beneath the surface. The...

Fools rush in for a free bar.
January 5, 2006... IF YOU made a fool out of yourself and are still living down the shame from the Christmas party season, Legal & General's new research may make you feel a little better. The findings revealed that, rather than using the parties to make a...

Bernanke's heavy burden.
January 5, 2006... IT was at New Year 1999 that the FTSE hit its all-time high of 6930 points. We all know what happened next -- but slowly and surely it has climbed back from its March 2003 nadir. Although not reaching those soaraway levels of six years...

Pledges stand.
January 5, 2006... The next 12 months will bring about great changes for the industry. Most obviously when pensions simplification finally arrives in April. Amid all this change, however, one thing will remain resolute -- Financial Adviser's commitment to...

Make real changes to make a difference.
January 5, 2006... IT IS AT this time of year that people naturally look forward and the PR machine moves into overdrive with countless suggestions on how to sort out your finances. IFAs and the financial services sector are often left out of this frenzy....

Saddling up to get a life and a plan.
January 5, 2006... IWISH a happy, peaceful and a prosperous New Year to each and every one of you. And here are my 10 New Year's resolutions. First, learn to ride -- and then buy -- a motorbike. This is something I have often thought about: 2006 is the year...

Having trouble with the tube.
January 5, 2006... AS higher energy prices have washed through the global economy, central bankers around the world have responded by either raising rates or by increasing their anti-inflation rhetoric. They currently share the common fear that higher energy...

Turner calls for advice cutback.
January 5, 2006... ADAIR Turner has called for less needless advice in the pensions sector to strip down costs. At a hearing of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, the pensions commission chairman also told MPs that the "roof has not fallen in" since...

Taming the dragon without a sword.
January 5, 2006... Well, it took a while, but finally there has been a reaction. Alan Greenspan saw it as a conundrum, equity markets were suspicious and investors were, quite rightly, concerned. It was certainly strange -- interest rates had risen in the US...

Not a flat earth, but a level playing field.
January 5, 2006... ON 1st January 2006, the major investment managers in 27 countries -- including the UK, US, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, and Canada -- adopted a common method of presenting the investment performance of the funds they...

Change is name of the game.
January 5, 2006... WHAT difference A-Day will make to the protection market is the big topic for 2006, while minds will also be concentrated on the Association of British Insurers and its review of critical illness. After a year in which the housing market...

Oakwood exodus hits HBoS.
January 5, 2006... EIGHT senior and middle management employees of HBoS are to jump ship and join Oakwood. It follows the departure of Michael Bolton and four other HBoS executives in October to the London-based private equity firm. Among those leaving...

Making clients comfortable.
January 5, 2006... What will 2006 hold for protection? Will it be the year of protection or will it be another year of trying to re-build the reputation of protection and strengthening the product? Thinking back to this time last year, the main issue we faced...

The customer in the spotlight.
January 5, 2006... THE past few weeks of the year are a time for winding down and taking pleasure in whatever way is most suitable and acceptable to our protectors in the nanny state of political correctness. Or more likely, ignoring the killjoys completely...

Open house for opportunities.
January 5, 2006... The lifetime mortgage market has gradually increased during 2005 and I expect this to continue growing during the course of this year. More members of the public are aware of these schemes and more lenders are entering the market. With more...

From a sprint to a marathon.
January 5, 2006... IN the past few months, the housing market has been more resilient than many commentators thought likely a year ago. When we published our revised forecasts to coincide with our annual conference, we adjusted upward our predictions for...

According to the book?
January 5, 2006... AND now a note from the parish register. Although many people left the FA flock sometime ago, we always like to keep an eye on what former financial services people do after leaving the industry. So it was a pleasant surprise when former...

Be prepared for shifting tides.
January 5, 2006... When asked to make predictions regarding something as unpredictable as investment markets you have to be careful not to sit so far astride the fence as to do yourself harm, or be so extreme as to be doomed to failure. Somewhere in the...

FSCS pay out calls rejected.
January 5, 2006... The FSA has rejected calls to raise the maximum levels of compensation available through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. In a consultation paper to close on 31 March, the FSA proposes to leave the compensation limits at their...

Failing to tackle basic problems.
January 5, 2006... The ability for Muslim parents to invest their child trust fund vouchers in a new Shariah compliant account has been welcomed in theory by many in the investment industry. And in a period of such exponential growth in the providers and products...

Together we can be stronger.
January 5, 2006... MY favourite Ian Drury track has got to be Reasons To Be Cheerful and that's the way I see 2006: there is cause for business optimism. Not that the year will be without its issues. We can see those storm clouds on the horizon already. ...

The future must be kept in sharp focus.
January 5, 2006... THERE is no doubt that the next 12 months will bring us a range of fresh challenges within the financial services industry. As this year dawns, I am sure that many of us will have been drafting business plans in order to focus on our core...

Price drop may fail to help first-timers.
January 5, 2006... A DROP in house prices may not be enough to aid first-time buyers, as house price inflation continues to outstrip wage rises and new buyers are paying more despite a recent slowdown, a recent survey has revealed. Figures from the office of...

L&G move shows 'everything that's wrong'.(Legal and General Group PLC)
January 5, 2006... LEGAL & General's decision to make its funds platform available to several building societies is all about distribution, not good advice, Churchill Investments has claimed. Jamie Ware, managing director of Somerset-based Churchill...

Axa takes a combined approach to boost range.
January 5, 2006... AXA Multi Manager has launched an enhanced product range with the re-positioning of its Multi-Manager Dynamic fund. The fund will aim to produce a total return over the medium term through active allocation and fund selection. It will...

Newcastle BS's Pick Your Fix deal gets thumbs up.
January 5, 2006... NEWCASTLE Building Society's Pick Your Fix rates will pull in business, according to Darren Gardner of Redbrook Financial Management. The society is offering identical rates in three new mortgage deals with fixed rates for two-, three- and...

Tie-in deals 'undermine' Skipton's fixed offer.
January 5, 2006... A MORTGAGE specialist has branded Skipton Building Society's 3.99 per cent fixed-rate product unacceptable due to its two-and-a-half year tie-in. Despite saying the offer looked good on paper, John Ashley, a mortgage adviser for...

Expert warns Reits will limit the exposure to markets.
January 5, 2006... REAL estate investment trusts will not give investors real exposure to the property market, according to an expert. Robin Christie, managing director of London-based PropertyBourse, believes that people who are interested in the property...

Forecasts rethink for Capital.(2006 housing predictions, Capital Economics)(Brief Article)
January 5, 2006... CAPITAL Economics has been forced to revise its 2006 housing predictions amid signs that a property price crash in the UK will not materialise. At the beginning of last year, Roger Bootle, managing director of the consultancy group,...

IFA warns investors of Nationwide GEB flaws.
January 5, 2006... NATIONWIDE'S Guaranteed Equity bond has too many flaws, according to Baronworth. Colin Jackson, director of Essex- based Baronworth, said that on the face of it the product is very attractive, but that it does not stand up well on...

Sipp Solutions calls for retention of gearing.
January 5, 2006... A SELF-Invested personal pension provider has said that gearing should still be allowed on commercial property Sipps after A-Day. Christine Hallett, managing director of Sipp Solutions, said that the Treasury u-turn on residential property...

Onion attacks clauses cutbacks to curb costs.
January 5, 2006... PROTECTION providers are facing accusations of cutting corners when it comes to disability clauses, but providers say redesign will supports policyholders. Penny O'Nions, principal of the Onion Group, said that an apparent removal of...

Private sector warns on benefits cut threat.
January 5, 2006... THE private sector cannot and will not take up the slack if the government cuts sickness benefits, protection specialists have warned. The government has recently backed down on plans for sweeping changes to sickness benefit, but concerns...

Advisers need to embrace technology, says LBA study.
January 5, 2006... ADVISORY firms and providers are being urged to embrace new technology as research from the London Business Agency reveals a significant impact on efficiency and turnover among modernised businesses. It indicated that almost three-...

Platform claims lead position in near prime.
January 5, 2006... PLATFORM claims its new range of non-conforming two-year fixed rates are up to 0.5 of a percentage point lower than other standard products available. These new products follow hot on the heels of Platform's self-cert buy-to-let offering,...

Mortgage advisers told to re-assess lead generators.
January 5, 2006... MORTGAGE intermediaries have been urged to re-assess their attitudes towards lead generation. The results of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries' November census revealed that existing client relationships are of far greater...

Orbit enters the busy A-Day services market.
January 5, 2006... AN online pensions and benefits consultancy has launched a new A-Day pension calculator, adding to an increasing number of simplification tools. The online facility is designed to help pension novices in addition to experienced advisers...

Put spotlight on internet marketing, Ifap urges its members.
January 5, 2006... IFA Promotion has warned its members that IFA marketing must be focused online to prevent loss of earnings. David Elms, chief executive of the Ifap, said members must assess marketing plans for the year ahead and prioritise online promotion...

Keep resolutions and lose the deadweight.
January 5, 2006... Financial advisers have faced a wealth of obstacles over the past 17 years and, while many of these changes have not been easy to deal with, the resilient nature of advisers has enabled them to adapt their businesses. However, these...