Royal London's research shows that, when people receive financial advice, they view it as providing good or excellent value for money. However, with only 9% of individuals currently paying for full regulated financial advice, this leaves the vast majority navigating complex financial decisions on their own.
The introduction of Targeted Support represents a promising avenue to address this gap, enabling broader access to a new form of financial help. New Royal London modelling shows this could benefit 21.5 million people, empowering them to make well-informed financial decisions, and showcasing the value of advice which could lead to more people seeking fully individualised, paid for advice.
The FCA's trial, in which Royal London participated, demonstrated that Targeted Support helped customers feel more confident when making financial decisions.
Targeted Support will provide actionable, personalised advice for groups of consumers in similar circumstances. This free, regulated advice service is designed to help customers build financial resilience and make better decisions about their pensions and savings.
Royal London's Targeted Support service will centre on saving for the future and helping people to retire well, building upon the retirement planning and coaching services it offers today.
Ben Hampton, CEO Advice at Royal London, said: "Everyone deserves access to meaningful financial help, and Targeted Support is a once in a generation opportunity to reshape how people access it. Today, consumers looking for help face a tough choice of whether to pay for advice or not. Targeted Support is the missing link to create a sliding scale of help. It creates a seamless, ongoing range of support so customers can access different levels of decision-making help, depending on their needs.
"Financial vulnerability is rising, financial decisions have become much more complex, and consumer expectations for personalised, proactive support are increasing. We are defining and shaping how Targeted Support builds our customers’ financial resilience. Being customer-owned means Royal London prioritises long-term financial sustainability over short-term shareholder returns, and can take a fundamentally different approach. Purely driven by the best interests of our customers, we’re ideally positioned to deliver meaningful, accessible, and impactful Targeted Support in a responsible and effective way - at scale."
By combining tailored suggestions with educational support, Royal London will empower customers to take confident action at key life moments. Creating an accessible entry point to advice for more people earlier and acting as a bridge to individual advice from a financial adviser.
Ben Hampton added: "Targeted Support is set to transform how people across the UK access financial help, particularly at those crucial moments in life such as preparing for retirement. By providing free, tailored suggestions to groups with similar needs, we are taking a significant step beyond generic guidance and giving millions a real chance to make better decisions with confidence. This reform will create a vital bridge to individualised advice, helping to close the advice gap and ensure that many more people have access to meaningful, actionable support than ever before."
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