How We Make Money
Its black and white.
Our Fees
On receiving an enquiry, Life and Mortgages will arrange an initial call. The purpose of this call is to find out whether we can help you in achieving or moving towards your financial goals. There is no charge for this and no obligation on either side.
During this call we explain our fee structure and will aim to give you a clear understanding of what fees could apply to you in the future. Following the call we will write to you with an explanation of the services we have discussed, together with costings for your approval.
We can offer you a variety of ways of paying for our services: an hourly rate, a fixed fee for a specific task or a charging structure attached to your financial arrangements, whatever is the most appropriate to your requirements and personal preference. We will always agree our fees with you in writing before commencing any work
Typically, our fees can be split into the following categories:
PURE PROTECTION PRODUCTS
If you buy a protection product you may elect that we are remunerated by commission. The commission is paid directly by the provider. Although you pay nothing up front that does not mean our service is free. The commission paid to us forms part of a “product charge” which you pay when you purchase the product. Product charges pay for the product provider’s own costs and any commission payable to third parties.
You may elect that we arrange for the protection premium to be discounted by the commission that otherwise might have been payable under the policy recommended. In this instance you will need to pay a fee appropriate to cover our advice and work.
The amount of commission we receive will vary depending on the type of policy and (sometimes) the term of the policy or your age, as in the following example:
If you were to pay £20 per month towards a critical illness term assurance policy then we would receive 143% of the first 12 month’s payments (£343.20) in form of commission.
PURE PROTECTION PRODUCTS
Mortgages & Equity Release
Our Fees :
In accordance with the regulatory requirements, for providing mortgage advice there is:
– A fee of £300 is payable at application when you apply for a mortgage. We will also be paid commission from the lender.
– A fee of £500 is payable at application when you apply for a lifetime mortgage. We will also be paid commission from the lender.
Refund of fees:
If we charge you a fee, and your mortgage does not go ahead, you will receive:
– No refund if you decide not to proceed.
Our full I.D.D can be downloaded here:
Advice Only
If, following the advice, you wish for us make arrangements to implement the advice you can switch from the ‘advice only’ service to the ‘advice and implementation’ service. We will agree a new fee with you as below. In this case, the advice only fee will not apply as the cost of the advice already provided is incorporated in the combined service.
Advice Only
Advice and Delivery
Ongoing Service
We offer a range of review services to suit all client types / requirements. Typically, our review service will include the ongoing monitoring of your financial arrangements, face-to-face meetings with your financial advisor each year, and an annual advisory report to include portfolio updates and the use of annual tax free allowances such as ISAs or pension allowances. Again, the cost of this service is dependent upon the level of service you require and as always, this will be agreed with you at the outset.
Certain products – non-investment insurance policies and mortgages – can still pay a commission, and so we may work on the basis of a commission, a fee or a combination of both. As before, no costs are incurred without prior agreement, and all prospective earnings are disclosed before work is undertaken.
Fees may be subject to VAT at the prevailing rate, depending upon the type of work undertaken.