Aviva : Financial Advice announces launch of investment advice

• Advice proposition widens to include investment advice
• Aviva Financial Advice now supports customers with whole of wealth offering

Aviva has launched Investment Advice, as part of its Aviva Financial Advice (AFA) service for clients.

Customers are now able to request advice on investments, in addition to the current advice offered by Aviva on pensions, annuities and DB transfers.

Our customer feedback has shown us that people also want to discuss their wider financial planning as well as thinking about planning for retirement and beyond. With the addition of investment advice today, customers can receive more holistic advice support from AFA, according to their requirements.

Mary Harper, MD Aviva Financial Advice said, 'We are delighted to announce the addition of investment advice to our advice offering.

'Our amibition is to help bridge the advice gap, so we will continue to look at how we make our advice offering more accessible to more people, whether that is by adding more propositions, if we see the demand, or thinking flexibly about other ways in which people can benefit from advice, whether that's the full service or a simplified version.'

Providing advice on investments is also key in helping customers become more comfortable with the concept of risk and return, rather than keeping the vast majority of savings in cash.

Recent research by the FCA identified that £10K saved in cash in 2008 would have been worth £11,720 by 2018, but if the same amount had been invested, it would have been worth £21,905 by the end of the same period.¹

Mary Harper commented, 'Whilst cash will always play a part in prudent financial planning alongside other savings strategies to meet a range of savings needs, in the long run, customers' financial outcomes can be adversely impacted by an over-reliance on this alone, particularly when interest rates are very low. Not only do they not receive the returns they could do, but the value of cash is eroded through inflation.

'That's why we're pleased to be able to provide that advice on investments, broadening the level of support we can offer. Our Financial Advisers will be able to build a personalised investment plan for customers, tailored to their goals matching their needs at a level of risk and return they are comfortable with.'

At a glance - AFA Investments -

From 6 May, AFA will be providing investment advice on :

• ISAs
• General Investment Accounts / OEICs
• Onshore bonds

We can advise on investments alone, pensions alone or a combination of both, according to the customer need. If an Aviva solution isn't right for the customer, we will always refer them to seek whole of market advice.

Aviva Financial Advice takes advantage of the responsible investment expertise at Aviva Investors to integrate environmental, social & governance (ESG) considerations into core investment solutions.

Aviva Investors has been at the forefront of responsible investment for five decades. The company was a founding signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (2006), a member of the European Commission's High‑Level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance and served on the Financial Stability Board's Taskforce on Climate Related Financial Disclosures (both 2016). Aviva Investors continues to influence policy makers and regulators with the aim of creating sustainable financial markets. The firm's responsible investment approach promotes good practice through active ownership and collaboration.

Aviva Financial Advice (AFA) was set up in 2016, to bridge the advice gap fuelled by the Pensions Freedoms which came into force the previous year, and offered advice on pensions and annuities to customers who didn't already have an adviser. Advice on DB transfers was added later, and more recently abridged advice specifically for people who want to consider their DB pension as part of a complete review of retirement wealth.

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_{1 Evaluation of the impact of RDR and FAMR, FCA Report, December 2020}

Enquiries:

Catherine Comben

UK Insurance Media Relations

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