Personal financial planning is a highly fragmented market, with at least 24,000 Independent Financial Advisers providing services across the UK.

Whether you are an Independent Financial Adviser or work for a financial institution providing personal finance services, it is important to keep up-to-date with the latest best practice guidelines.

The British Standards Institution (BSI) launched a new standard BS ISO 22222 this year to specify the ethical behaviour, competences and experience required of a financial planner and to enhance the transparency and efficiency of the process for personal financial planning.

The standard will raise service levels for consumers and set a benchmark for practitioners beyond the current regulatory requirements allowing them to differentiate themselves in the marketplace. It sets requirements for personal financial planners, codifies best practice in financial planning across the world and will help to increase consumer confidence.

One of the major issues reported by consumers when seeking financial advice is uncertainty over whether they can trust their financial advisers. And, with the vast amount of investment schemes and financial planners for customers to choose from, they are often confused about where to turn for advice on planning for retirement or how best to invest their savings.

BS ISO 22222 plays a crucial role in addressing this by providing an internationally accepted benchmark which enables consumers to identify financial planners who possess the right knowledge, skills, ethics and experience to deliver the desired level of service.

BS ISO 22222 specifies requirements and provides a framework that applies to the ethical behaviour, competences and experience of a professional personal financial planner regardless of their employment status.

The standard defines six steps of the personal financial planning process:

• Establishing and defining the client and personal financial planner relationship
• Gathering client data and determining goals expectations
• Analysing and evaluating the client's financial status
• Developing and presenting the financial plan
• Implementing the financial planning recommendations
• Monitoring the financial plan and the financial planning relationship.

In addition, BS ISO 22222 describes and addresses the various methods of conformity assessment and specifies requirements applying to each of them.

Conformity assessment of personal financial planners is a complex task requiring access to specialised knowledge, skills and experience.

By adopting BS ISO 22222 the personal financial planner will be able to demonstrate continued competency following the necessary training programmes and maintaining records of these so that conformity to a high academic standard can be claimed.

For more information telephone 01462 442447 or email us at contacts@theadviserpartnership.co.uk – we look forward to hearing from you.

Copyright The Adviser Partnership 2008

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