Despite having just over 19,000 inhabitants1, the Cornish city of Truro is taking the lead in the quest for financial advice in the UK. New data from unbiased.co.uk shows a surge for financial advice from the people of Truro in the first three months of 2013, ranking number one, with the highest percentage of population in the UK (13.9%) searching for a financial adviser. This figure translates to almost one in seven Truronians searching in the last 12 months, compared to an average of less than one in 50 people across the UK.
The data2, taken from the UK’s biggest ‘find a financial adviser’ website, unbiased.co.uk, which deals with over 500,000 searches for a professional adviser per year,shows a clear demand for advice from people in the South. Salisbury (10.1%), Stevenage (9.6%) Bath (7.6%) and Cambridge (7.0%) all list in the top five most searched for areas, as a percentage of their population size.
Interestingly, London, which has the highest population in the UK, came in at number 84 on the list, with just 1.28% searching for a financial adviser.
Top ten postcode searches for financial advice (by % of population searching for a financial adviser):
|
1 |
Truro (TR) |
13.9% |
|
2 |
Salisbury (SP) |
10.1% |
|
3 |
Stevenage (SG) |
9.6% |
|
4 |
Bath (BA) |
7.6% |
|
5 |
Cambridge (CB) |
7.0% |
|
6 |
Shrewsbury (SY) |
5.5% |
|
7 |
Crewe (CW) |
5.4% |
|
8 |
Dorchester (DT) |
5.1% |
|
9 |
Exeter (EX) |
4.6% |
|
10 |
Kilmarnock (KA) |
4.4% |
Bottom ten postcode searches for financial advice (by % of population searching for a financial adviser):
|
1 |
Belfast (BT) |
0.34% |
|
2 |
Glasgow (G) |
0.39% |
|
3 |
Edinburgh (EH) |
0.47% |
|
4 |
Durham (DH) |
0.62% |
|
5 |
Aberdeen (AB) |
0.77% |
|
6 |
Sunderland (SR) |
0.84% |
|
7 |
Carlisle (CA) |
0.94% |
|
8 |
Middlesborough (TS) |
0.96% |
|
9 |
Dundee (DD) |
0.96% |
|
10 |
Blackpool (FY) |
0.99% |
Meanwhile, the north of the UK, Scotland and the capital of Northern Ireland have the lowest percentage of population searching for financial advice. Belfast has just 0.3% of searches for financial advice in the UK, Glasgow only 0.4% and Edinburgh 0.5%.
The website’s data shows there has been a strong demand for whole of market advice since the start of 2013. The website has reported a 9% increase in people searching for advice in the first four months of 2013, compared to the same period last year. The most popular areas that consumers are searching for advice on continue to be pensions, investments and savings.
Karen Barrett, Chief Executive of unbiased.co.uk, comments: “Our financial advice hotspots map reveals which areas in the UK have the highest percentage of people searching for a financial adviser in the UK – and while we always hear about the South East and London being the ‘center of wealth’, and therefore more likely to seek financial advice, it is refreshing to see our ‘Financial Advice Hotspots Map’ throwing up some surprising places!
“Advice is important for everyone, no matter where you live and how much money you have – getting professional advice on your mortgage options, help with finding the best annuity deal or advice on protecting your family against financial hardship, are all areas that are important to a large proportion of the population.
“We hear from a lot of consumers that they simply don’t know how to make sense of certain areas of their finances and therefore decide to leave them for another day, which often results in these areas never being tackled. The important thing to remember is that you don’t have to be a personal finance expert yourself; getting professional advice is a great way of taking control of your finances and giving your family peace of mind. Unbiased.co.uk lists over 15,000 whole of market financial advisers and you can carry out a free and confidential search for advisers listed on your chosen postcode. For some helpful tips to finding the right financial adviser for your needs look at our checklist or for more information visit www.unbiased.co.uk.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
State of the advice landscape:
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About unbiased.co.uk - the UK's No 1 ‘Find an adviser’ website
At unbiased.co.uk provide the easiest way for consumers to find and compare advisers meeting their requirements from over 25,000 IFAs, financial advisers, mortgage advisers, solicitors and accountants listed on our search.
The unbiased.co.uk website is the online destination for consumers and businesses looking to find an adviser. Now attracting over one million visitors a year, unbiased.co.uk is the default adviser directory for consumer websites recommending their audience to ‘find an adviser’.
Unbiased Ltd promotes the benefits of financial and legal advice to consumers and businesses and would like to thank the following companies for their support:
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|
Aviva |
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|
AXA Wealth |
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|
Bright Grey |
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|
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|
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|
Legal & General |
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TaxCalc |
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Category: Financial Planning Tagged: Financial Advice Hotspots
