Why work with an Independent Adviser? Three words: Long Term Relationship.
Why is that important these days? Well, it’s huge. Here’s why.
Many financial services professionals work for an institution that requires them to leave their clients behind if that professional leaves employment. So, the long term relationship is with an institution, not a person. That could result in a new adviser being assigned to your account(s)/policy(s) if the original adviser leaves. The new person would have start the whole relationship with you from scratch, and just when you get comfortable, you could get a notice that another new financial professional has been assigned to you.
That’s if you are lucky enough to have an adviser at all these days. There are many people out there with account balances that fall below a financial institution’s stated minimum threshold, and are assigned to a toll free number instead of a specific adviser. You might even be assigned a ‘Robo-Adviser’. (Try telling the robot that there your name is misspelled on some document and see what it says).
How does all of this affect you? Well, that depends on your unique situation. The older you get, the more financial and insurance products you tend to have. The longer you live, the more you’re exposed to births, deaths, marriages, divorces, losing employment, gaining new employment, and so on. Each one of these things can create a need for updates to your accounts and policies. More updates means more paperwork, more paperwork means more room for error but it could also mean you need to review your accounts and policies as well. With the new regulations requiring considerable due diligence and data gathering, well, you get the picture.
A relationship is about shared memories and experiences. We’ve got some relationships dating back over twenty years. By definition, it’s not possible to constantly re-create long term relationships.
As far as robots go? If you happen to get one on the phone, try starting the sentences with; “Hey, do you remember way back when…?”