Ann: Full Year Statutory Accounts, page-85

I'm sure Dixon and others have their disclosures properly squared away. But I think there are a few problems:

• a lot of people seeking financial advice, probably the majority, are not experts and so probably do not appreciate the significance of the disclosures (and I suspect often do not even read them)
• most financial advisers tell clients they are acting in their best interests while they are under the influence of conflicts that make it very difficult for them to do so - indeed, it is hard to see how disclosing a conflict and then saying I'll act in your best interests are compatible
• it is actually very difficult to find a financial adviser who is not labouring under a significant conflict.

In my view more consumer protection is needed. As an interesting comparison, if a lawyer were to advise a client while holding a conflict of interest of the magnitude we are talking here, they would be banned from practice.