More than half of advised adults have sought financial advice to understand what the Covid-19 panic means for them, and 85 per cent have financial concerns when thinking about the next 12 months.
Prudential UK’s Family Wealth Unlocked report, , which looks at intergenerational planning and wealth transfer between advised families amid the financial volatility and insecurity of the pandemic, found that more than 53 per cent of UK adults say the financial crisis caused by Covid-19 has prompted them to seek advice from a financial adviser. Of these, a third have already sought financial advice and 20 per cent are planning to. Amongst those who say they aren’t seeking financial advice,15 per cent say they might in the future.
Having to use savings to make ends meet is the biggest concern amongst advised households, a worry for 23 per cent, while losing money on investments is a concern for 20 per cent. Reduced income is a worry for 18 per cent, while 17 per cent are worried about losing their job. Social care and health costs are a worry for 14 per cent, while not saving any money is a concern for 13 per cent, with 11 per cent worried about getting into debt.
Having to financially support children, not being able to afford to retire as plan and having to ask parents or family for financial support are a concern for 11, 10 and 9 per cent respectively.
The report also revealed that the need for financial advice was felt greatest among the younger generations, with 74 per cent of Millennials saying they had or were going to see an adviser, and 58 per cent for Generation Z, driven by ‘getting into financial difficulty’ and ‘wanting to start their investment journey’. While still pronounced, the need for advice decreases slightly with age.
Prudential UK director of specialist business support Vince Smith-Hughes says: “It’s been a challenging 12 months for UK adults up and down the country and this has stimulated the need for advice, be it because of pent-up cash levels, market volatility or job security. While the need for advice spans all generations, our research reveals the pandemic appears to have created a pronounced opportunity for advisers to provide advice to younger audiences.
“While many assume cost is a barrier to advice, this does not appear to be the case in Covid-times – for any of the five generations interviewed. In fact, only 3% of the sample overall said they’d like to see an adviser but couldn’t afford to. Hopefully this research also acts as a wake-up call to those who don’t currently take advice that many of them could benefit from doing so.”
Biggest financial concerns for the next 12 months:
- Having to use my savings to make ends meet – 23%
- My investments losing money – 20%
- Having a reduced income – 18%
- Being made redundant/losing my job – 17%
- Social care/health costs – 14%
- Not saving any money – 13%
- Getting into debt – 11%
- Having to financially support my children – 11%
- Not being able to afford to retire as planned – 10%
- Having to ask my parents/family for financial support – 9%
