Unbiased.co.uk Develops Find an IFA' Service For Corporate Pensions Scheme Partners
- New service available to help put members of corporate pension schemes in touch with an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) of their choice
- Database of IFAs checked against FSA data weekly
- Search is entirely confidential for members – no details are sent onto an IFA – so it is up to the scheme member to make the first contact
- Key support for pension scheme members during any transition in scheme structure
Unbiased.co.uk, the not for profit, Find an Independent Financial Adviser Search service, has launched a new service; building, free of charge, white-labelled versions of its search to sit on corporate pension scheme extranets and websites.
The ‘Find an IFA’ search would allow pension scheme members to choose an IFA best suited to their needs and is entirely confidential. Details are not passed on to any organisations, so no ‘cold calls’ will be received.
Using the new service, pension scheme members can search from the 17,000 registered individuals at over 9,000 IFA firms on the Unbiased.co.uk database, all of whom are checked with the Financial Services Authority (FSA) on a weekly basis to ensure they remain registered to provide independent financial advice.
They can also search using the following criteria:
Location – the search will automatically bring back the IFA closest to the post code entered by the member first
Gender – if the pension scheme member wants to specify a female IFA for example – they can
Qualifications – Unbiased.co.uk hold details of over 22,000 incremental qualifications which are each individually verified by the awarding body. So if the scheme member wants to see an IFA with relevant pension qualification – they can again search in this way
The search can be provided in such a way to sit within any extranet or restricted access website for members of the relevant corporate pension scheme.
David Elms, Chief Executive of Unbiased.co.uk, commented: “We are happy to work with any corporate pension scheme that can see the merit in putting its members in touch with an independent third party to discuss their finances – or indeed what planned changes to their corporate pension scheme means for them.
“The search is the most hygienic available – this is why it can be found on over 60 consumer websites – including such high profile sites and portals as Yahoo, The Times, Telegraph, Guardian, This is Money, AOL and MSN.”
Corporate pension scheme trustees or Human Resource professionals wishing to discuss adding the search to their pension scheme member extranet or website should contact Unbiased.co.uk on 020 8733 3131.
-ends-
Notes to editors
For further information please contact:
David Elms | Anna Schirmer/Jonathon Grove |
Chief Executive | Lansons Communications |
Unbiased.co.uk | 020 7294 3682 |
020 7833 3131 |
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For expert comment or case studies from over 200 media-friendly IFAs, journalists should call Unbiased.co.uk’s Media Services hotline on
020 7294 3682 or search online at www.unbiased.co.uk/media
1. Independent Financial Adviser Promotion
Unbiased.co.uk is the consumer brand of IFA Promotion, the organisation established in 1989 to promote the value and accessibility of independent financial advice to the public. It represents around 9,000 firms of independent financial advisers across the UK, incorporating over 17,000 registered individuals. These individuals hold over 22,000 incremental qualifications which are each individually verified by the awarding body. IFA Promotion welcomes the prominent display of incremental qualifications and further developments into the credentials of independent financial advice.
IFA Promotion is sponsored by 29 leading financial institutions, and in the past 12 months, over 575,000 consumers and businesses used unbiased.co.uk to find local independent financial advice.
IFA Promotion believes Independent financial advice should be:
Affordable. The option to take independent financial advice should be available, by right, to all- not just the wealthiest in society.
Convenient. IFAs should be available in the location of the consumer’s choice, wherever they live in the UK.
Transparent. It must be clearly transparent to consumers who is able to offer independent financial advice and who is not.
2. Independent Financial Adviser Promotion’s sponsors
Abbey for Intermediaries | Lutine Assurance Services |
Aberdeen Asset Management | MetLife |
AEGON Scottish Equitable Plc | National Savings & Investments |
Alliance Trust | New Star Investment Funds |
AXA Life | Norwich Union Life |
Bright Grey | Prudential |
Canada Life Ltd | Scottish Life |
The Children’s Mutual | Scottish Life International |
Clerical Medical Investment | Scottish Widows Plc |
Defaqto | Skandia UK Group |
Friends Provident | Standard Life Assurance Company |
The Hartford | Tomorrow |
Invesco Perpetual | Unum |
Legal & General | Zurich Intermediary Group |
Lincoln Financial Group |
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Registered Office: IFA Promotion Ltd, 90 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5UB. Registered in Scotland: No. 114606