Customer Classification
The firm proposes to classify you as a Private Customer.
Investment Objectives and Restrictions
Any advice or recommendation offered to you will be based on your stated investment objectives, acceptable level of risk and any restrictions you wish to place on the type of investments or policies you are willing to consider. Details of your stated investment objectives will be included in the Suitability Letter we will issue to you to confirm our recommendation. Unless confirmed in writing, to the contrary, we will assume that you do not wish to place any restrictions on the advice we give you.
Investments Services
The firm is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to advise on and arrange Life Assurance, Pensions, Collective Investments, Personal Equity Plans, Individual Saving Accounts and Financial Planning. We are bound by the rules of the FSA.
Lotus Benefit Consultants Ltd is an independent adviser and will act on your behalf in advising you on products from the whole market.
With regard to investments we have arranged for you, these will not be kept under review unless we have been specifically asked to do so by you. However, we may contact you in the future by means of an unsolicited promotion should we wish to contact you to discuss the relative merits of an investment or service which we feel may be of interest to you.
Written Instructions
We will normally require you to give written instructions in order for us to carry out transactions on your behalf. However, in cases of emergency we will act upon spoken instruction subject to confirmation in writing.
Client Responsibilities
In order to efficiently perform our duties and responsibilities to the client, we must receive the full cooperation of the client. The client therefore agrees to provide full information as we need and request from time to time to satisfy our regulatory responsibilities and compliance requirements as detailed within the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, The Financial Services Authority Conduct of Business Rule Books and our internal compliance requirements. Our analysis and reports will be based on personal and financial information provided by the client.
The client undertakes to read all the documentation provided by us and agrees to contact us within 14 days of receipt of the said documents if there is any part of the document which requires clarification or explanation.
Investment Objectives and Risk Profile
Our reports will incorporate your investment objectives, aspirations and goals based on your risk profile and this will be ascertained as part of our information gathering exercise. The outcome of the Risk Profile will be included in our Report to you and shall be regarded as part of this Agreement. A copy of the Report will be given to the client and the client agrees to notify us if amendments are necessary.
Clients Response to Recommendations
The client may accept or reject completely or in part any of the recommendations made in the Client Report and the client has sole authority to accept or reject implementation, advice or counselling from us.
Remuneration
Our charges are based on a time costed basis for any work that we are engaged by the client to undertake and we will invoice the client at 2 monthly intervals or when the fee amount reaches £500 whichever event occurs first. Clients will be charged for time spent travelling to and from meetings by any Lotus employee or director, plus disbursements.
We derive income from commission paid to us in respect of transactions in Life Assurance. Pensions, PEP/ISA, OIECS, Unit Trusts, and other Regulated Collective Investment Schemes and in Investment Trust Companies' shares held in a PEP/ISA or regular savings scheme. We shall tell you the amount and the frequency of commission payable to us on any such investment
If the client or we propose to operate on a fee basis, we will agree its basis, frequency and method with you in writing before we carry out any chargeable work. Should we receive commission from any third party in relation to transactions arranged for you, we will offset the amount received against any fees due. In the event that any commissions are rebated directly to the client, there may be tax implications for the client and it is strongly suggested that the client seeks advice from Inland Revenue on the tax treatment of such income.
If we agree to offset fees against the commission and the client subsequently ceases to pay premiums on the policy and in consequence we are obliged to refund the commission that has been paid to us, we reserve the right to apply the firms fee notified to you, less any commissions received, for a period of up to four years after commencement of the policy, but we will not charge you a fee if you exercise your right to cancel in accordance with the cancellation notice sent to you by the Product Provider.
We reserve the right to limit the amount of time we devote to a client's arrangements. This may be necessary where clear communications and terms of engagement have not been established.
We reserve the right to share any commission or fees received by us with other introducing agents.
Accounting to Customers
Unless in exceptional circumstances, we will confirm to you in writing the basis or our reason for recommending the transaction executed on your behalf.
We will also make arrangements for all your investments to be registered in your name unless you first instruct us otherwise in writing. We will forward to you all documents showing ownership of your investments as soon as practicable after we receive them; where a number of documents relating to a series of transactions is involved, we will normally hold each document until the series is complete and then forward them to you .
Conflicts of Interest
We offer independent advice but occasions can arise where we, or one of our customers, will have some form of interest in business that we are transacting for you. If this happens, or we become aware that our interests or those of one of our other customers conflict with your interests, we will inform you in writing and obtain your consent before we carry out your instructions.
Client Money
The firm does not handle clients money. We never accept a cheque made out to us (unless it is a cheque in settlement of charges or disbursements for which we have sent you an invoice) or handle cash.
Making a Complaint
If you should have any complaint about the advice you receive or a product that you have bought please write to the Compliance Officer at Lotus Benefit Consultants Ltd, Temple House, 221-225 Station Road, Harrow, Middlesex HA1 2TH. If you feel that your complaint has not been sufficiently handled you may subsequently complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London, E14 9SR, Tel: 0207 676 1000.
Financial Services Compensation Scheme
We are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. You may be entitled to compensation from the scheme if we cannot meet our obligations. This depends on the type of business and the circumstances of the claim. Most types of investment business are covered for 100% of the first £30,000 and 90% of the next £20,000, so the maximum compensation is £48,000. Further information about the compensation arrangements is available from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme
Termination of this Agreement
You or we may terminate our authority to act on your behalf at any time without penalty. Notice of this termination must be given in writing. The termination will be without prejudice to the completion of transactions already initiated, if this is the case.
Client consent
I understand and consent to the above terms and I hereby authorise the transfer of information, as described above on a confidential basis when warranted between such third parties. I agree that the Terms of Business will come into immediate effect.
These Terms of Business are governed by English Law.
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