A very good point.
I answered the question asked, but this is a much more serious issue.
@Marc
I had this discussion about the safety of Wealth Options with a broker recently who has a number of clients with Self Administered Pension Schemes. I asked the question - could Wealth Options sell his shares without his knowledge? The broker told me that none of his clients had shares - they are all in property.
Brendan
Brendan it’s our old friend commission again.
Those who support it will always condemn criticism of it. As Upton Sinclair said;”it’s difficult for a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding “
A broker is paid a commission for
facilitating a property purchase within a pension (I’m not suggesting that they get paid a commission for advising on the purchase of a property) and they can be paid the same for giving really competent financial advice but that requires more paperwork, research, etc and requires a long conversation with the client about why a few rental properties don’t represent a prudent retirement strategy.
It’s just easier to be a facilitator than to be a good adviser.
You also see this on ask about money with execution only business.
To meet the regulatory definition of execution only is a very high bar beyond the reach of most consumers.
You need to be able to specify all aspects of a contract provider fund etc.
Few consumers are able to do this without advice and therefore a financial adviser is required to conduct a detailed and time consuming (and very valuable) fact find and suitability assessment and recommend the most suitable contract.
It’s not acceptable in my view to give “advice” on AAM with no regulatory protection and no PI cover.
Lead the client to a conclusion and then agree to execute the purchase on an execution only basis claiming that the client knew what the wanted.