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Our services and costs for the review of Defined Benefit (DB) Pension Schemes

Authorisation Statement

Clayton Holmes Naisbitt Financial Consultancy LLP is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA regulates financial services in the UK and you can check our authorisation and permitted activities on the Financial Services Register by visiting the FCA’s website www.fca.org.uk/firms/systems-reporting/register or, by contacting the FCA on 0800 111 6758. Our Financial Services Register number is 485351.

The Scope of our Services

We provide independent advice. We will consider the merits of your existing defined benefit (DB) pension scheme to determine whether or not to transfer those benefits. Where we carry out a full analysis, we will compare your existing scheme to the most suitable alternative from the available market. Where we do this, we are not restricted to the products of any pension provider.

 We will only recommend you transfer your existing DB pension scheme where we can demonstrate it is in your best interests to do so. Should we recommend you remain in your existing scheme we will set out the reasons why we have determined this is the best outcome for you. If you do not accept our outcome and request to transfer your benefits regardless, we would not be prepared to proceed on that basis. This means if you cannot arrange the transfer directly, you would have to find an alternative firm that considers the transfer to be suitable or a firm that deals with client instructions that go against the advice that has been given (this is known as an ‘insistent client’). 

Our usual minimum consideration for transfer advice of this type is £300,000

We do not consider the following: -

  • Transaction conducted on an insistent client, non-advised or execution only basis; or if a client was introduced by an unregulated third party.
  • A client was aged under 50 at the time of the transfer.  This will not apply to transfers undertaken due to reasons of ill health where it can be clearly demonstrated that a serious condition is likely to result in a shorter life expectancy, or due to a pension sharing order.
  • Multiple Transfers from the same pension scheme example: More than ten clients have been transferred out of the same pension scheme per annum.

For most people it will be in their best interests to remain in their existing DB scheme due to the safeguarded benefits (a secure pension income in retirement and other features) these offer. Should a transfer go ahead it is important to note, that the funds you invest in will not be guaranteed as their underlying value can fall as well as rise, which means the value of the pension fund, and income you may need from it, can reduce significantly. This will be explained further should we recommend you transfer.

 

Your Needs and Objectives

Unless we notify you in writing to the contrary, we will be treating you as a “retail client”. This means that you are afforded the highest level of protection under the regulatory system and should have the right to take any complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Any recommendation(s) we provide will only be given after we have assessed your needs and objectives. Considering the merits of giving up safeguarded benefits held within a DB pension scheme is a complex matter. Our review will therefore need to include, but will not be limited to, an assessment of your:

  • financial objectives and personal circumstances
  • attitude to the risks of giving up safeguarded benefits, investment risk and capacity to bear any losses
  • benefits provided by your existing DB scheme

We may determine, after this initial assessment, that it is in your best interests to remain in the scheme and where we do, we will confirm this to you as our personal recommendation. If however it remains unclear whether or not you should remain in the scheme, we will subsequently:

  • Identify a suitable alternative pension product (or another firm can make this recommendation to you if you prefer that option)
  • Carry out a full comparison between the existing and alternative scheme(s)
  • Provide a personal recommendation and demonstrate our reasons for this, before agreeing it with you.
  • (where our recommendation is to transfer and you agree to proceed) Arrange the transfer

 

Our Ethical Policy

We are committed to providing the highest standard of financial advice and service possible. The interest of our clients is paramount to us and to achieve this we have designed our systems and procedures to place you at the heart of our business. In doing so, we will:

  • be open, honest and transparent in the way we deal with you;
  • not place our interests above yours;
  • communicate clearly, promptly and without jargon;
  • Seek your views and perception of our dealings with you to ensure it meets your expectations or to identify any improvements required.

INSTRUCTIONS

We only accept instructions in writing (paper or electronic means) to aid clarification and avoid future misunderstandings. Please note we will not act on oral instructions, unless these are followed up in writing, to avoid any possible misunderstandings.


OUR SERVICES AND COSTS

Triage

You will first be asked to consider the general benefits and disadvantages of the different types of pension schemes available. This is an educational process to help you decide whether to proceed to advice. This is without charge and is known as our ‘triage service’.

 

Abridged Advice

Should you wish to proceed we will carry out the initial assessment, as identified in the ‘Your needs and objectives’ section, to determine if you would benefit from full advice. This is to ensure you do not pay for our full services when it would be clear, earlier in the advice process, that it is in your best interests to remain in your existing scheme. This process is known as ‘abridged advice’ and after which we will either provide you with a recommendation to remain in your existing scheme or, where the initial assessment does not produce a clear outcome, confirm the need to provide you with full advice to determine this.

 

The cost of our abridged advice is: £600

 

The above charge becomes payable on the outcome of our review, unless you proceed to full advice (see below) where the cost of abridged advice will be offset against our full advice costs.

 

Full advice

Where the outcome is unclear following abridged advice it will be your choice to take full advice. This will complete the advice process as identified in the ‘Your needs and objectives’ section and provide you with a full recommendation, although that recommendation could be to remain in your existing scheme.

We will not proceed to full advice until you instruct us. Our full advice charges are set out here:

 

Our charges for this service are based on a percentage of the cash equivalent transfer value (CETV).

Percentage of the amount invested:

Our Standard Fees

  • First £100,000 is 3%
  • From £100,001 to £250,000 is 2%
  • From £250,000 is 1%

For example, if the CETV was £300,000 our percentage charge would be £5,900, whereas if the CETV was £750,000 our charge would be £10,400

 * The cost of abridged advice of £600 has been offset against our full advice costs in the example above. 

Our charges become payable on the provision of our recommendation, or earlier termination of our services by you, and our charges for full advice will be the same whether we recommend you remain in your existing scheme or transfer. Should a transfer proceed we will NOT charge you for the time we take in implementing our recommendation.

 

 

How payment can be made

We will request this directly from you where our recommendation is to remain in your existing DB scheme or where the pension provider in receipt of the transferred funds is unable to facilitate payment from the fund.

Should we recommend a transfer and the pension provider is able to facilitate payment from the fund, we will collect payment by this method unless you instruct us otherwise.

 

Ongoing Services

If you transfer your existing DB pension scheme you will be giving up valuable safeguarded benefits in favour of a fund which will be subject to investment risk. You may therefore consider it important to review the fund to ensure the pension continues to meet your objectives and at regular intervals. Our ongoing service proposition can support you in these matters and we confirm the nature of our service and the costs below:


ONGOING REVIEWS AND CHANGES TO EXISTING INVESTMENTS

We will discuss the full range of our on-going services during our initial consultation of this service. These services include, but are not limited to, providing you with:

  • structured reviews to give you peace of mind;
  • an assessment of your circumstances and any changes to your plans that are needed;
  • regular updates and information regarding your holdings;
  • a choice of differing levels of support depending on your needs;
  • ongoing support with correspondence and administration issues.

It is important to review every investment you hold and at regular intervals. At the time of, or prior to, our recommendation to you we will discuss our on-going service proposition. This is confirmed in our financial planning process section within this document.

Details of these different levels of services are contained in our Financial Planning Brochure. We will agree separately the level of ongoing services at the time of, or prior to, making our recommendation(s) to you. Our costs for ongoing services are charged between 0% - 1% per annum, are based on the value of your investment(s) at each 12-month anniversary, and are paid pro-rata in arrears.

In line with your agreed service level you will receive an invitation to a review meeting. For your convenience you will be required to contact your adviser to arrange this meeting.

It should be noted that if you choose our Premium Service this is subject to a minimum fee example below of our ongoing review services,

Advisory Service - A percentage of funds under management will be charged per annum.

Premium Service - A percentage of funds under management subject to a minimum fee of £1500 will be charged per annum.

 

We have placed below examples to help you understand how these would be applied;

Example 1; If your pension fund was valued at £300,000 and you have selected Advisory Service (0.50%), the ongoing management fee we would receive is £1500.  Whereas if the value was £700,000 the charge would be £3,500.

Example 2; If your investments are valued at £300,000 and you have selected Premium Advisory Service (0.75%),

the ongoing management fee we would receive is £2,250. Whereas if the value was £700,000 the charge would be £5,250

Example 3; If your investments are valued at £300, 000 and you have selected Premium Advisory Service (1%), the ongoing management fee we would receive is £3,000. Whereas if the value was £700,000 the charge would be £7,000

Where the value of your investments rises, then the fees for this service will increase. Conversely, if the value of your investments falls, the cost of this service will decrease. Any change to the level of services throughout this agreement will result in a pro-rata charge being applied.

You can choose to pay these fees directly or by deduction from the policy(ies) you hold. Should you wish to pay directly, you can spread the payment over a 12-month period by standing order. These payments will commence the month following the start of your policy. At each anniversary of this agreement, we will revalue your policy(ies) and notify you to any revised annual charges due to any fluctuation of your investment(s) at that time.

We will issue an Invoice annually which will be paid directly by you. We must receive full payment of the invoice amount within 14 days.

*The charges listed above can be deducted from your investments or paid directly by yourself.*

As the value of your pension fund will fall and rise over time, our fees will fluctuate accordingly. You can stop this service at any time and without penalty.


CANCELLATION OF SERVICES

Cancellation Rights

If we recommend you transfer your DB pension benefits, we will withhold taking any action for 14 calendar days, from the date of you accepting our recommendation, should you change your mind.  This is important because once the transfer of benefits has been completed it will not be possible to transfer back into your previous scheme. Once the transfer is processed you will also receive separate rights to cancel the pension product we recommend, details of which will be provided by the product provider at that time.

 

Termination of our Client Agreement

The authority to act on your behalf may be terminated at any time without penalty by either party by giving 30 days notice in writing, to that effect, to the other. This will be without prejudice to the completion of transactions already initiated. Any transactions effected before termination and a due proportion of any period charges for services shall be settled to that date.

 

Pension

We reserve the right to ask for 12 months payment by either the continuation of the ongoing adviser fee, or a fee to the same value for the 12-month period, payable within 30 days.

 

Cancellation of Ongoing Review services

Should you or CHN Financial Consultancy decide to cancel the agreement to provide on-going-services, written

confirmation must be provided of that decision; we will cease payments for these services within 30 business days and after collection of any due proportion of any period charges.

 

VAT

Under current legislation our services are not subject to VAT but should this change in future and VAT becomes payable, we will notify you before conducting any further work.

 

Client Money

Clayton Holmes Naisbitt Financial Consultancy LLP are not permitted to handle client money and we cannot accept a cheque made out to us (unless it is in respect of an item for which we have sent you an invoice) or handle cash.

 

Communications

We will communication with you in writing (paper or electronic means), by phone and by video conference when providing services to you. All communications issued to you will be in English, unless agreed otherwise.

 

Material Interest

We will act honestly, fairly and professionally known as conducting business in ‘Client’s best interest’ regulations. Occasionally situations may arise where we or one of our other clients have some form of interest in business transacted for you. If this happens or we become aware that our interests or those of one of our other client’s conflict with your interest, we will write to you and obtain your consent before we carry out your instructions, and detail the steps we will take to ensure fair treatment. Where this cannot be achieved, we will not conduct the business.

 

Complaints

If you wish to register a complaint, please write to CHN Financial Consultancy, 1 John Charles Way, Gelderd Road, Leeds, LS12 6QA or telephone 0113 387 8240 or e-mail in the first instance to our complaints officer lee@chnfc.co.uk.

A summary of our internal complaints handling procedures for the reasonable and prompt handling of complaints is available on request and if you cannot settle your complaint with us, you may be entitled to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service at www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk  or by contacting them on 0800 023 4567.

 

Compensation Scheme

If you make a complaint and we are unable to meet our liabilities, you may be entitled to compensation from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme up to a maximum of £85,000.

Further information is available from the FSCS at http://www.fscs.org.uk/what-we-cover/products

 

Anti-Money laundering

We are required by the anti-money laundering regulations to verify the identity of our clients, to obtain information as to the purpose and nature of the business which we conduct on their behalf, and to ensure that the information we hold is up-to-date. For this purpose, we may use electronic identity verification systems and we may conduct these checks from time to time throughout our relationship, not just at the beginning.

 

Law

This client agreement is governed and shall be construed in accordance with English Law and the parties shall submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.

 

Force Majeure

Clayton Holmes Naisbitt Financial Consultancy LLP shall not be in breach of this Agreement and shall not incur any liability to you if there is any failure to perform its duties due to any circumstances reasonably beyond its control.