FAQs - Nicholas Grogan
1. What do you do?
I help my clients make informed financial decisions. These can involve all areas of financial planning, including pensions, investments, taxes, protection products (insurance) etc.
2. What qualifications do you hold personally?
I am a Chartered Financial Planner, a Certified Financial Planner, and a Fellow of the Personal Finance Society. Very few financial professionals hold all three esteemed accreditations.
I also won the highly coveted Investment Advice Specialist of the year at the 2021/22 Personal Finance Society Awards.
3. What’s your investment approach or philosophy?
Our investment philosophy is to keep things as simple as possible and minimise costs. We base our advice on decades of empirical data and research by Nobel Prize-winning economists. We don’t chase fads, engage in market timing and other behaviours that damage return. You can find out more about this here.
4. Will you put my interests first when providing me with advice?
As a firm, we take our duty to always act in the client’s best interest (vs. just trying to sell you a product) very seriously. In addition to a legal obligation, our firm has been built on a foundation of placing the client’s interest before any thoughts of our compensation.
I recommend to clients the same investment strategies I use personally.
5. How much access will I get to you when I need you?
I hold planning meetings at least annually with my clients. I send out regular communications, updates, and advice. My clients also have telephone and email access to my team and me whenever needed.
6. Are you independent or restricted?
In many cases, a restricted adviser is restricted because they belong to a large organisation that wants to limit their advisers’ liability by reducing the number of investment funds and other products they need to consider before giving advice. Some of these organisations will nudge or incentivise their advisers to use in-house investment options (which are generally more expensive for no extra value).
We are fully independent, which on its own means absolutely nothing, as there are good and bad advisers who are independent.
7. Are you directly authorised by the FCA or an appointed representative of another organisation?
We are directly authorised by the FCA.
8. How do you charge?
We charge a fixed one-off fee for initial advice and percentage-based ongoing fees for ongoing advice. The fees are relative to the complexity of your financial situation.
9. How big is your team?
We employ over 20 people, and this includes around ten support staff.
10. Would I have a dedicated person to contact when needed?
Apart from myself, there are dedicated members of our support team who can be contacted.
11. Who owns the company?
This is definitely worth knowing. Some firms are owned by asset managers who steer client money into their products.
We are completely director-owned.
12. How long will it take to receive advice?
Good quality advice takes time and is a process, not a singular event. We can deliver advice in a few weeks if the advice does not involve gathering data from third parties, such as product providers. Unfortunately, getting the data we need from third parties can add significant amounts of time to this process.
What our clients say
We’re incredibly proud of the work we do. Here are the real words of real clients.
Matt has been my financial adviser for many years. During this time, he has always made himself available to advise on any matters that I have been concerned about. He has become a valued friend, with a wealth of financial knowledge.
Twenty years ago, my accountant recommended Matt Webb as a first-class financial adviser and that has proved to be the case. He is always courteous and ready to explain any questions I may have.
Matt has been our financial adviser for a number of years now and we look forward to working with him for many years to come. His expertise, advice, guidance and reliability has been at the heart of the trusting relationship from which we benefit.
I suffered a stroke at 58 and had to stop working to focus upon my recovery. PWS’s input was invaluable. They convinced me and my wife that we had amassed sufficient wealth to enable early retirement. I am now 61 and have made a full recovery and enjoy my retirement in the knowledge that I have a “financial partner” in PWS to allay my natural anxiety given the uncertainty we all have to navigate.
Matt has a very good understanding of his clients’ needs and nothing is ever too much trouble. Matt is very knowledgeable and explains everything clearly and in sufficient detail to enable an informed decision to be made. He deals with everything quickly and efficiently and responds promptly to every query. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Matt to anyone seeking any form of financial advice.
I have used the services of PWS for over ten years now. I have found their services and advice to be clear, efficient and prompt at all times. It has been refreshing to work with a company that is proactive and gives peace of mind that you really are receiving considered advice that specifically suits individual needs. I have had no hesitation in recommending PWS to personal friends as well as colleagues. Thanks Mo and your exceptional team - see you soon!
I was introduced to Steve in 2008. I genuinely trust and appreciate the professional advice given to me and my family. The ongoing investment and pension advice has been invaluable through the good and the bad times and I have had no hesitation in recommending Steve to family and friends.
PWS Financial Consulting Ltd have been our financial advisers since 2005. They have always offered sound financial advice based on our investment objectives as well as our personal needs. They keep in regular contact and provide us with ongoing financial advice as our needs and markets change. They take the time needed to fully explain our options and to guide us in an appropriate direction. We feel as though they truly care about us, our finances and our future.
(Mohit) Thank you so much for helping me by sorting out my retirement, pensions and general finances. You managed to improve my financial gains through astute financial management, and greatly help reduce my losses during the crash a number of years ago. It helps so much when you speak in a down-to-earth manner, which assists my decision-making going forward.
Having been a client of PWS for over 20 years, I cannot recommend them too highly. The levels of professionalism and product knowledge are excellent. They are fully interested in client and family circumstances and provide continuity of personnel which is crucial for client comfort. Their fees are realistic, and they make ease of consultation a priority. I would not hesitate to recommend their services.
I have been fortunate enough to have Matt as my financial adviser for over 10 years and during this time he has seen me and my husband through some major life events. These have included my own unexpected ill-health retirement and also for my husband, his cancer diagnosis, financial planning around this, his retirement and subsequent death. Throughout everything Matt has always been very personable, thorough, informed, efficient, responsive and has always dealt with us with great care and understanding, giving tailored advice to our own specific situation. Matt’s advice and support have made very difficult moments in our lives more manageable and have given me and my family a great base for a financially safe and comfortable future. I would not hesitate to highly recommend Matt as a financial advisor and I am very grateful that he has looked after us so well for so long.
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