Informed Choice Chief Executive Nick Bamford recently took part in a webcast, answering questions about the Retail Distribution Review (RDR).
Nick was joined by Danny Wynn, the RDR and Commercial Director at Legal & General Savings.
The Retail Distribution Review (RDR) is scheduled to be implemented by the end of 2012. It will polarise advisers between independent restricted advice.
All financial advisers will be required to have a higher level of professional qualifications, equivalent to QCF Level 4 (Diploma in Financial Planning or similar). For new entrants this new requirement comes into force next year. For existing financial advisers, they will need to raise their qualification benchmark by the end of 2012.
Another major change as a result of RDR is the introduction of ‘adviser charging’ and the abolition of ‘funded commission’. This means that all charges for financial advice must be clearly agreed between the adviser and client at outset. It is a step short of ‘fee charging advice’ but it does mean that product providers can no longer set remuneration levels for the sale of financial products.
Informed Choice is already well-prepared for the introduction of the Retail Distribution Review, as a result of the change we have engineered within the business over the past five years.
