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Be prepared for financial advice fees

Cape Town – A big change in regulation of payment for financial advice will be implemented later this year.

This first phase of the Retail Distribution Review (RDR) is expected to bring South Africa a step closer to making direct payment for financial advice a greater reality. The implications of this change will be significant not only for consumers, but also financial advisers, and both need to prepare for the new advice scenario of RDR, cautioned financial services firm Masthead.

RDR will, among other things, put an end to commission earned by financial advisers on lump sum investments. It forms part of the Financial Services Board’s (FSB) framework that seeks to ensure fair outcomes to customers and tries to minimise potential conflicts between the interests of customers, product providers and advisers.  

“It is important that consumers are made aware that advisers will be charging fees in lieu of commission falling away. This will require a mindset change, considering that most consumers don’t generally think of commission as payment for advice," said Ian Middleton, managing director of Masthead.

"There is a perception that advice is given for free. Consumers need to realise that fees are just a different way of paying for what the adviser does for them.”

He explained that in an RDR environment, consumers are likely to face various ways of charging by advisers. They could be billed an hourly rate for the cost of advice, just as they are billed when they consult a medical professional. Or they could be charged per use, which is effectively a transactional cost for services. Alternatively, in relation to investments, they could be billed a fee that is linked as a percentage to the size of the investment.

“Whichever method of charging is applied, the customer will be responsible to pay. But, they won’t necessarily have to dig into their pockets to fund the fee,” said Middleton.

“The RDR proposals cater for a system whereby product providers can collect and pay fees to advisers on behalf of customers in much the same way that commission is currently paid from the product provider to the adviser on the sale of an investment product.”

Besides consumers, financial advisers also need to prepare for an RDR environment. “The single biggest challenge they face is how to articulate their value proposition to customers and then link this to the right level of fee to charge,” said Middleton.

“If customers recognise the value advisers offer, and see them adding value on an ongoing basis, they will accept that they need to pay a fee and feel comfortable paying it, as they would for other services. If they don’t experience value, they will not want to pay.”

Masthead research indicates that currently less than one in three advisers charges fees. Where they do, it’s more likely to be in relation to advice on lump sum investments and short-term insurance.

“Of those who don’t have a fee structure, a mere 8% say they would be very comfortable to implement a fee charging model,” said Middleton. “Some 44% say they have some work to do before they can do so, while 42% say they are ‘concerned’."

This latter group raises a concern for him in that, if these advisers choose not to implement fees and fall out of the market, the advice pool will notably shrink. This will impact consumers.

He added that another challenge for advisers is knowing where to pitch their fees. Advisers who have a sliding scale for fees on investments typically charge upfront fees of up to 1.5% and ongoing fees of up to 1% of the value of the assets.

He said more than half of the advisers feel that fees, whether hourly rates or otherwise, should not be regulated by the FSB, mostly because their practices are too different. Others said the complexity of their customers’ needs should determine fees. Some 16% believe that, although the FSB should not regulate fees, it should provide guideline charges.

Middleton said further feedback from advisers revealed that 53% of them think consumers would pay for advice on risk products, as value is added through the advice given.

“Advisers say that customers pay for time, trust and a relationship with their adviser. Those who believe customers would not pay for advice say their clients cannot afford fees and may resort to buying online or using direct marketers because they think they will get a cheaper premium.

He also noted an RDR fee-based world with less upfront commission will pose a short-term cash crunch for advisory practices as they switch from commission to fee-based billing. For this reason, the sooner advisers gear their business to switch to fee based billing, the better, in his view.

Currently 57% of advisers earn more than half their income from new business. For 55% of advisers, more than half their new business income is based on upfront commission.

“South Africa is a highly under-insured, under-saved nation. It is imperative to have the right environment that ensures ease of access to financial advice at an affordable price. It is also important that a balance is achieved to ensure financial advisory practices remain viable businesses and the industry does not appear unattractive to new and younger entrants," he said.

"In a market of ageing advisers, where the majority are over age 40, it is vital to attract younger candidates to participate in a succession plan. If we get the balance right, a win-win situation can be achieved for consumers and advisers, as well as the broader community."

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