In October 2004 we launched our Premier Investment Monitoring Service (PIMS) and at the time of writing this now has investments of over £125 million held within it. We believe that this highlights the success of the service, having been running for 6 years with many happy clients.

D-PIMS is a new evolution of PIMS which introduces discretionary management. This means we do not have to obtain clients written instructions (subject to their prior agreement) to make changes to investments, which allows us to react more quickly and be more proactive. In developing D-PIMS we have back tested the original version of PIMS and our research shows that D-PIMS can deliver significantly improved returns.

D-PIMS is not a product but an investment service. It can be applied to a wide range of financial vehicles including Pensions, ISAs, OEIC/Unit Trusts and Investment Bonds. The investments within the specific vehicles are applied to one of a range of D-PIMS portfolios, which themselves are predominantly a mix of collective investment funds.

We believe that D-PIMS offers a first class solution to your investment needs and would be more than happy to discuss your requirements in more detail.
For further details please click here.

The broad principles of investment apply equally to any and all investments regardless of type.  We have clients with funds currently invested in the following products:

Having sourced the whole market for the most suitable medium for your investment, we can offer you the opportunity to benefit from professional fund management expertise and knowledge of specialist markets and currencies. In addition you will be able to "switch" your Investment funds, capitalising on changing market conditions and opportunities, or adapting to suit your revised personal and family requirements.

You should note that the value of your investment in investment-linked funds can go down as well as up and that their past performance is not necessarily a guide to their future performance.

It is important to recognise that as a result of continuing improvements to diet, hygiene, medical science and technology, we are now living for much longer on average, than our predecessors. There is every indication that this trend will continue into the future which means that we have either to be prepared to continue working for our income later into life, or to “save” enough during working life on which to enjoy our retirement years.

Having sourced the whole market for the most suitable investment medium for your investment, we can offer you the opportunity to benefit from professional fund management expertise and knowledge of specialist markets and currencies.

In addition you will be able to "switch" your Investment funds, capitalising on changing market conditions and opportunities - or adapting to suit your revised personal and family requirements.

During the course of a lifetime, we all make a number of important financial decisions but few if any, will be of such long reaching consequence as those made when taking pension benefits. Decisions that need to be made in relation to pension income are extremely important, making the right decisions will help you to enjoy a long and relaxed retirement, but getting it wrong is probably irreversible and may well mean retirement years spent in anxiety and stress over your finances.

The benefits that you can take at retirement will comprise:

We aim to explain in straightforward terms, the different ways in which you can access your pension entitlements, the advantages and disadvantages of each method and the extent to which your pension is guaranteed or dependent on future investment results.

This area of advice is now so complex that in most instances if you try to access your pension without advice you will be worse off!

You should note that the value of your investment in investment-linked funds can go down as well as up and that their past performance is not necessarily a guide to their future performance.

We use the services of our fully qualified advisers whose skills and knowledge are supported by the latest technology and administration staff with many years experience in the handling of mortgage applications. All of this combines to ensure that we will deliver for you:

It is also important to keep your mortgage package under frequent review during the years that the loan is outstanding. There are a number of very good reasons why you should devote a little time to this every 2 or 3 years, the main ones being:

		Interest Rates – It may well be possible to “Re-Mortgage” your debt and benefit by way of lower monthly costs or a reduced loan period
		Investments. - Many loans are best arranged on an interest only basis with a parallel investment security running alongside. Whenever a loan is operating on this basis it is essential to review the progress of the investment products to ensure that the required funds needed to meet the repayment debt will be available

YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE

Whilst the very wealthy often make lifetime gifts of significant value, the great majority of us tend to retain our wealth until death, often because it is our home or investments on which we rely for our income. With today's house values, the proportion of estates that have an IHT liability increases each year, although with careful will and financial planning, much of this tax liability could be eliminated. Whilst we welcome the announcement that any "unused" Nil Rate Allowance can later be added to the figure for a surviving spouse or civil partner there are many people that still have an "IHT Problem" because of the value of their assets - or because the qualifications for the full double allowance are not met.
The main 'exemptions' to note in planning for IHT include:

Hopefully, the notes above will have alerted you to the impact that inheritance tax can have on family wealth. We will be delighted to help you plan for this eventuality, taking into account not only the need to mitigate the tax, but also the current and future financial requirements of the family members.

The types of contracts available are:

		CRITICAL ILLNESS INSURANCE
		There can hardly be a person who has not experienced, directly or indirectly, the distress that the diagnosis of a serious illness brings to a family. The mortgage costs, routine bills and housekeeping costs will still have to be met and critical illness cover will provide for the tax-free payment of a lump sum, following diagnosis of a covered illness. Critical illness cover is inexpensive and should be an essential part of financial security for all families. Unfortunately, the chance of critical illness is much greater than you think!
		LIFE INSURANCE
		Most households have basic life insurance cover in place to repay their mortgage following the unexpected death of a 'breadwinner'. This, of course, is essential but we very frequently find that the amount of benefit stops there! Basic life assurance cover does not cost large amounts and we frequently find that clients with older policies can replace these with identical cover at a much lower cost, or can substantially increase their current level of protection. If you have life assurance or mortgage protection assurance in operation, why not send us the details to see whether we can secure improved terms for you?
		PROTECTION OF INCOME
		We are all used to having our income in the bank account at the beginning of the month but have you ever stopped to consider your position if this did not happen for one month or longer?  Income replacement accident and sickness cover is an essential part of your financial protection package, if you do not have an employer's scheme that will pay adequate income until your retirement. This type of cover is especially important for the self-employed.

Whether established as a Partnership or as a Limited Company, the financial planning needs of the modern business are similar. Questions that all such operations should consider, include: -

In the event of the death of a Director or Partner the Business must consider  the following:

		To whom would he leave the Shares?
		As the new share holder how can your widow and family benefit from the value of your shares?
		Could the new shareholder bring the required skills, expertise and knowledge to the Firm?
		Would the surviving Directors be happy with their new boss or colleague?
		Might the new shareholder, in their own best interests sell them to a very unwelcome competitor?
		If left to the Widow, could the remaining Directors afford to buy the shares from her?
		How long will it take for the Firm to find a suitably qualified person to replace the Director?
		What will be the immediate impact on the Company’s profits and on the dividends?

Employees value the consideration that employers give to the various types of "welfare" schemes that are available. Careful selection of those relevant to your operation may be a valuable investment in your staff and help to reduce the substantial costs of "selection and recruitment" that are an inevitable consequence of turnover. Such arrangements include:-

		Group Private Health Insurance
		Group Pension Schemes
		Income Replacement Sickness Schemes
		Group Life Assurance Plans

We are all used to having our income in the bank account at the beginning of the month, but have you ever stopped to consider your position if this did not happen one month or longer?  Protecting against loss of income due to redundancy is an essential part of your financial protection package

Being made redundant presents a whole host of issues that need to be addressed and these are in addition to the need to find a new source of income. Questions that need to be addressed include:

		How can I use any lump sum redundancy payment to provide me with an income in the short term?
		How can I reduce my outgoings without compromising future plans?
		What benefits did I previously enjoy, such as life cover and pension benefits that I will no need to replace?

The need for independent financial advice at this difficult time is essential and we can offer a personally tailored solution to ensure the impact of redundancy is minimised.