Trust in planning reaches new low
The latest research from Investment Trends had told financial planners what they already know – that public perceptions of planners has been significantly negatively affected by the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry.
Trust in planners has fallen to a new low, placing them in the ‘distrusted’ range, but this is less the case amongst people who use planners.
The latest Investment Trends 2018 Financial Advice Report, which reflects the views of nearly 8,000 respondents, found that more than 40 per cent of respondents believed the financial services and banking industry had not met its obligation to everyday Australians and that trust in planners was at an all-time low.
Commenting on the results, Investment Trends senior analyst, King Loong Choi said that each year, the firm asked Australians to rate their level of trust (from a scale of 0 to 10) in 11 different professions and financial services sectors, ranging from accountants to super funds to their friends/family.
“Unsurprisingly, Australians trust their friends/family the most (average score of 7.0) while politicians sit at the other end of the spectrum (3.0),” he said. “But in the last 12 months, trust levels have fallen most severely for banks and financial planners to below five out of 10, and into the ‘distrusted’ range. Banks fell from a trust rating of 5.5 to 4.8, while financial planners fell from 5.1 to 4.8.”
“The trust impact of the Royal Commission is real, and the financial advice industry must take proactive measures to rebuild trust among the wider population,” said Choi. “One of the most important steps involves lifting transparency in every single aspect of the advice process.”
Recommended for you
A NSW-based adviser has been banned from providing financial services for five years for inappropriate advice and the AFSL of his business has been cancelled by ASIC.
The introduction of Rhombus Advisory has caused a shift in the top advice licensees as Insignia separates its advice business into two channels.
Given the clear divergence between the cost of financial advice and clients’ willingness to pay, two experts explore how advisers can transform the way they convey value to potential clients.
Nearly 18 months since Invest Blue adopted its nine-day fortnight structure to support employee wellbeing, the national advice firm has enjoyed positive results across all metrics.