About Financial Advice

Our Restricted Advice

Investments – we offer a restricted advice service. We will recommend investments from the whole of the market but do not currently advise on specific types of investment such as unregulated collectives and structured products. You may ask us for a list of the types of products we advise on. With regards to any advice to invest within Collective Investments (ISAs, OEICs and Unit Trusts) please note that our chosen providers are Fidelity Funds Network and Octopus Investments only.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

The FCA, to give it its shorter title is the independent watchdog that regulates all financial and insurance firms – this ranges from the largest multinational bank, to the financial adviser operating as a sole trader. The FCA handbook lays down the rules and guidance to which all regulated Advisers must adhere to. The rules are freely available from the FCA’s website – www.fca.org.uk. Please note by clicking on this link you will leave our website and enter into a third party website of which our firm is not responsible for the content.

To ensure you do get personal advice we will collect certain details about you and your circumstances to enable us to advise you. Remember to be as open and honest as you can, because our recommendation will be based on the information you provide.

All financial advisers have to provide their customers with the relevant important disclosure documents, detailing the following: information on services provided by the firm, how the firm is paid for the business it conducts, their complaints procedure, Data Protection and coverage under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). You can ask to see our disclosure documents at any time, simply contact us for these.

What protection do I have? 

We will always endeavour to ensure the products recommended are suitable for you. When we are advising you on regulated products (including investments and insurance) you have the protection of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

If you are unhappy about the advice or service you have received from us you should firstly contact us. This gives us the chance to put things right and/or to provide our own version of events. Should you remain dissatisfied you may be entitled to refer your complaint to the FOS who will investigate the complaint independently and make a ruling. The FOS work with customers and financial advisers to resolve a complaint, and when they do have to make a ruling it is binding upon our firm. If you wish to register a complaint against our firm our contact details can be found on the contact us page of this website. 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 4 567.

If you try to submit a complaint and our firm has been dissolved, or we are unable to meet our obligations, you may have recourse to the FSCS (Financial Services Compensation Scheme). This service is funded by levies on firms such as ours that are authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to protect customers where firms have closed or gone into liquidation.

Anything else I should know? 

Some financial advisers do give advice on products that are not regulated by FCA – such as general taxation and some Buy-to-Let mortgages. Your adviser will explain to you when you are receiving advice on an unregulated product. It is important you are happy with the advice as you may not have the added protection of the FOS or FSCS when dealing with some unregulated products.

The financial conduct authority does not regulate taxation advice and some forms of buy to let mortgages.

As a mortgage is secured against your home, it could be repossessed if you do not keep up the mortgage repayments

Want to know more?

Call us for a friendly chat on 01229 770001 or email: orchinvest@aol.com