Pension Advice Planning

Tony and Paula Williams

My pension pot was badly damaged by the collapse of Equitable Life and I needed a financial adviser I could trust. Fortunately, I was recommended Chris.

Chris has since advised on my pension and savings; he’s also helped my husband and set up an inheritance plan for my two sons.

Chris has the personal touch - he’s very approachable, down-to-earth and you don’t feel intimidated. He meets with us once or twice a year, or more regularly if we’ve got a question, and he’s always at the end of the phone.

Reading the small print

As well as helping us, Chris goes the extra mile. He was able to help us to save money from my mother’s pension when she went into a home.

We’d taken out an insurance policy that meant she was exempt from paying the care home fees from her pension, but we didn’t realise until Chris read the small print.

Thanks to Chris, we were able to get help from the local authority instead of paying the full fees. We wouldn’t have known that otherwise.

Proactive advice

What I like most about working with Chris is that he’s always proactive in explaining what he’s doing and why he’s doing it. He describes the state of the market and gives us detailed reports which means we can see everything in black and white. If circumstances change with Brexit, I’m not worried because he’s looking a world markets as well as the EU.

He also offers us the chance to rebalance from year to year with different degrees of risk. You can change that annually depending on where you are and what you’re looking to achieve.

Regular reviews

Each year we sit down with him and he asks us what we’ve got planned, asking if we’ve got any additional expenses to cover, for example we’ve given our sons some money over the years. We discuss it beforehand and he explains the implications clearly.

From inheritance tax to our insurance policies, he looks at everything to make sure we’re all covered take and he takes our family circumstances to heart. He’s a family man with two children of his own, and so he’s on your level. He feels more like a friend than an adviser. It’s nice having that continuity – you’re not speaking to someone different every time.

He doesn’t treat us as numbers, he deals with us as people, which makes us feel safe, secure and protected.

Other Case studies

Pension Transfer

Straightforward advice
Martin Rees

What really helped was having Phil explain things to me in great detail, without the jargon, which enabled me to make an informed decision. He made everything seem straightforward.

Read Martin's story..

Investment Advice

Specialist support
Anthony Rotondo

If I’ve got a problem with my heating I get a plumber in – it’s the same with financial advice; you need a specialist who can look after it for you.

Read Anthony’s story..