Are You Getting Value From the Financial Advice You Pay For?
Do you know exactly how much you’re paying for your financial advice and investments—and what you’re receiving in return?
It’s a straightforward question, but one that many investors would struggle to answer.
Most of us regularly review our household bills, insurance premiums, mortgage rates and other expenses. Yet when it comes to pensions and investments, charges can often receive much less attention.
That matters because even relatively small differences in annual costs can have a meaningful effect over time.
But this isn’t an argument for simply choosing the cheapest adviser or investment solution.
The more important question is:
Are you receiving good value for the costs you’re paying?
What Are You Actually Paying For?
When you look at an investment or pension statement, you may see several different charges. Understanding the difference between them is an important first step.
Financial Adviser Fees
This is the cost of the financial advice and ongoing service you receive.
Depending on your adviser and the service you’ve agreed, this might include:
· Regular financial planning reviews
· Retirement planning
· Cash-flow forecasting
· Reviewing your investment strategy
· Rebalancing your portfolio
· Pension and investment planning
· Discussions around tax-efficient planning
· Reviewing changes in your personal circumstances
· Ongoing support when important financial decisions arise
The key question isn’t simply whether an adviser charges a fee.
It’s what that fee actually covers.
Platform Charges
Your pension or investment may be held through an investment platform. The platform provides the administration and technology that allows your investments to be held and managed.
There is normally a separate charge for this service.
Fund Charges
Your portfolio may contain funds, and those funds have their own costs associated with managing the underlying investments.
These costs can vary considerably depending on the investments used.
Other Investment Costs
There can also be additional costs, such as transaction costs associated with buying and selling investments.
These may not always be as obvious as the headline adviser or platform charge.
The important point is that the fee you pay your adviser isn’t necessarily the same thing as the total cost of running your investment portfolio.
Understanding the complete picture is much more useful than looking at a single percentage.
A 1% Difference Can Be More Significant Than It Sounds
Consider two investors who each have £300,000 invested.
For illustration, suppose both portfolios achieve the same investment return before charges.
One investor pays total annual costs of 1%.
The other pays 2%.
The difference is 1 percentage point a year.
On £300,000, that’s initially equivalent to around £3,000 a year.
That may not sound dramatic in isolation. But investment costs are paid repeatedly, and the money used to pay those costs is money that is no longer invested and compounding.
Over a long investment period, that difference can become significant.
This is why it’s worth understanding not only the percentage you’re paying, but what that percentage means in pounds and pence.
Of course, cost isn’t the only consideration.
A cheaper investment solution isn’t automatically better, just as a more expensive one isn’t automatically better.
The Cheapest Adviser Isn’t Necessarily the Best Adviser
It’s tempting to compare advisers purely on price.
For example, if one adviser charges 0.75% and another charges 1%, it might appear obvious that the first adviser offers better value.
But that conclusion can’t be reached from the percentage alone.
What does each adviser actually provide?
Does one provide comprehensive financial planning while the other primarily manages investments?
Does one regularly review your retirement plans and cash-flow requirements?
Does one help you make decisions when your circumstances change?
Does one provide ongoing support for your family and wider financial affairs?
The right comparison isn’t:
“Who charges the lowest fee?”
It’s:
“What am I paying, what am I receiving, and is that service appropriate for my needs?”
Where Does the Real Value of Advice Come From?
In our experience, the biggest value clients often receive isn’t investment selection.
It’s having a structured financial plan, regular reviews, retirement forecasting and someone to turn to when major financial decisions need to be made.
Whether retirement arrives sooner than expected, an inheritance is received, markets become volatile or family circumstances change, having a trusted adviser can help provide clarity and reassurance when it is needed most.
Investment selection is undoubtedly important, but good financial planning is about much more than choosing investments.
It’s about understanding where you are today, where you want to get to and what needs to happen to give you the best chance of getting there.
That ongoing relationship can become particularly valuable when circumstances don’t go according to plan.
Five Questions Worth Asking Your Financial Adviser
If you’ve never reviewed your fees, you don’t necessarily need to change anything.
A good starting point is simply to ask some questions.
1. What is my total annual cost?
Don’t just ask for the adviser fee.
Ask for the total cost of your arrangements, including adviser, platform and underlying investment costs where relevant.
And ask for the answer in pounds as well as percentages.
2. What services are included in my ongoing fee?
You should be able to understand what you’re paying for.
How often will your financial plan be reviewed?
What ongoing support is available?
What happens if your circumstances change?
3. Has my investment strategy changed as my circumstances have changed?
Your portfolio shouldn’t exist in isolation from your financial plan.
Your objectives, retirement plans, income requirements and attitude to investment risk can all change over time.
Your investment strategy should be reviewed in that context.
4. Has the cost of my arrangements changed as my portfolio has grown?
Percentage-based fees are worth considering particularly carefully as portfolios become larger.
A percentage that seemed modest on a smaller portfolio can represent a considerably larger annual payment as the value of your investments increases.
That doesn’t necessarily mean the fee is unreasonable—but it does make it worth reviewing.
5. Am I still receiving the service I originally agreed to?
Your circumstances may have changed.
Your needs may have changed.
And the service you’re receiving may have changed too.
A regular review gives you an opportunity to make sure the relationship still works for you.
How Often Should You Review Your Financial Advice Fees?
There is no fixed rule for how often you should review your financial advice fees and arrangements.
However, many investors choose to review their fees and wider financial arrangements at least annually.
Regular reviews can help ensure that:
· Charges remain appropriate
· The services you’re receiving continue to meet your needs
· Your investment strategy remains aligned with your objectives
· Your retirement plans remain on track
· Your financial plan reflects any changes in your circumstances
An annual review doesn’t necessarily mean making changes.
Sometimes, the most valuable outcome is simply knowing that your existing arrangements remain appropriate and that you understand the costs involved.
A Fee Review Isn’t Necessarily About Changing Adviser
It’s important to make this distinction.
Reviewing your fees doesn’t automatically mean you should move your investments, change your pension provider or find a new adviser.
Sometimes the conclusion will simply be:
“Everything is appropriate, and I’m receiving good value.”
That’s a worthwhile conclusion.
A good financial review should give you greater confidence in your arrangements—not create unnecessary activity.
If changes are appropriate, they should be made because they improve your overall financial position, not simply because a different provider happens to have a lower headline charge.
Your Financial Plan Should Evolve With You
Financial planning isn’t something you do once and then forget about.
Your circumstances change.
Your priorities change.
Markets change.
Tax rules change.
Your retirement date may change.
Your income requirements may change.
Your attitude to investment risk may change.
The purpose of regular financial planning is to make sure your strategy continues to reflect the life you’re actually planning for—not the circumstances you had several years ago.
What Should a Good Review Cover?
At a minimum, it’s worth understanding:
· What you’re paying your financial adviser
· What you’re paying your investment platform
· What you’re paying for underlying investments
· What other investment costs apply
· What services you’re receiving
· Whether your investments remain appropriate for your objectives
· Whether your retirement plans remain on track
· Whether your wider financial circumstances have changed
· Whether your current arrangements continue to represent good value
The objective isn’t to find the lowest possible cost.
It’s to make sure the overall arrangement makes sense for you.
The Bottom Line
Financial advice is a cost.
But it can also be an important part of a wider financial plan.
The question isn’t whether you should pay for advice. Nor is it whether you should always choose the cheapest available option.
The question is whether you understand what you’re paying, what you’re receiving in return, and whether the advice and arrangements continue to be appropriate for your circumstances.
If you haven’t reviewed your fees for several years, that could be a good place to start.
You may gain a clearer understanding of exactly what you’re paying and why.
You may discover that you’re receiving excellent value.
Either way, having clarity is valuable.
Would You Like a Second Opinion?
If you’re unsure what you’re currently paying for your financial advice, pensions or investments, an independent review can help you understand the overall picture.
At Corcillium Wealth Management, we believe clients should be able to understand not only what they pay, but also the service and value they receive in return.
Sometimes a review leads to change.
Sometimes it simply provides reassurance that your existing arrangements remain appropriate.
If nothing else, understanding exactly what you’re paying and the value you’re receiving can help you make informed decisions about your financial future.
Putting your finances at the heart of what we do.
The value of investments and any income from them can fall as well as rise and you may not get back the original amount invested.
A pension is a long term investment the fund value may fluctuate and can go down. Your eventual income may depend upon the size of the fund at retirement, future interest rates and tax legislation.
Approved by 2Plan Wealth management on 22/09/2026