The Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) Chief Operating Officer is encouraging people to seek professional advice to safeguard against things “going wrong” with their finances.
COO, Warren Day said using a licensed financial adviser was important because it controlled the kinds of financial products a licensee or their authorised representative could offer and whether they could operate legally in Australia.
“It also guarantees you minimum standards, including training and ongoing compliance requirements,” Mr Day (pictured) said.
“When providing personal advice, licensed advisers are legally required to act in your best interests and provide advice that takes into account your circumstances, based on their professional knowledge and expertise,” he said.
“While using a licensed adviser doesn’t guarantee against financial loss, dealing with licensed professionals provides important safeguards if things go wrong.”
Mr Day said these safeguards may include remediation for investors who’d suffered loss or detriment as a result of misconduct or other compliance failure by an advice licensee (or its representatives).
He said importantly, it also included recourse to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), a free external dispute resolution body.
A recommendation from a friend may seem like a good idea, but the COO said people should always independently check that their acquaintance was licensed or authorised to provide advice.
“Many scams are known to operate through social networks and referrals,” he said.
“It pays to do your homework and check that your adviser is both qualified and licensed, or authorised, to do the job.”
Mr Day said people could easily check that an advisor was qualified and licenced on ASIC’s Financial Affairs Register.
He said ASIC’s Moneysmart website had helpful information on how to approach getting financial advice.
The Financial Affairs Register can be accessed at this PS News link and Moneysmart at this link.
