More Harm Than Good?
The Adviser’s Dilemma
A monthly column where Emma unpacks real-life situations from across the profession and shares a fresh perspective.
Each month you'll find the latest column published here and also featured in Money Marketing Magazine.
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Dear Emma,
I have been supporting a client in her late 60s - pro bono - for over two years. She first came to me wanting advice regarding a complaint against a previous adviser who had persuaded her away from a straightforward gift to her child and into a much larger, more complex inheritance tax solution. In my view the advice fundamentally didn't meet her objectives - something she raised repeatedly with her adviser at the time before finally deferring to his professional judgement. After our meeting, I confirmed that her complaint appeared valid, and she decided to make a formal complaint. The firm offered compensation but it fell way short of the loss she’d incurred.
Following the complaint, the Ombudsman appeared to place some of the blame on her for accepting the advice. This all happened over a 2+ year period and my client is still trying to fight the decision and is debating taking the case to court. Fighting the case in court could cause her even more financial damage, but I also worry about the emotional damage it could bring. I have tried to be as objective as possible, explaining the pros and cons of any course of action, however the last time she came in I could see how much of an emotional toll this is taking on her.
I’m worried I did not do her any favours when I told her she could go to the Ombudsman if she was not satisfied with the initial compensation offer, as it may have validated her desire to fight on when the more pragmatic approach may have been to just accept it and move on.
She still appears to want to fight the case - with very good cause in my opinion - but should I stop trying to help her and tell her just to accept the Ombudsman's findings and move on, even though I disagree with those findings?
Yours,
More Harm Than Good?
Dear More Harm Than Good?
What strikes me first about your letter is less the dilemma itself, and more the person writing it. Your benevolence, integrity and sense of justice shine through every line, and before I say anything else, I want to say thank you for that. For being one of the good guys.
It's precisely because you care so much that you now find yourself asking whether you should tell her to accept the Ombudsman's findings and move on. But I think there's a clue in the question itself.
To date you've been perfectly clear - you've offered sound, informed guidance and acted with integrity. But now, watching the toll this is taking on her, it seems something has shifted and you're asking whether you should tell her what to do, as if your job is to protect her from the consequences of her actions. As if your role is to be more of a rescuer than an adviser.
It's an interesting dynamic, because here is a woman who was talked out of her own instincts by an adviser who told her she should defer to his judgement and has been living with that ever since. And now here you are, wondering whether you should tell her what to do next. Could this be a pattern this client unconsciously sets up - one where she absolves herself of autonomy and responsibility? What may distinguish you most from her previous adviser is precisely that you don't override her judgement but rather that you trust her to decide. That's a benevolent, empowering and professional boundary in action.
I also want to ask if you have considered the toll this situation is taking on you? You've done a lot. Far more than could reasonably be asked of you. Meeting someone pro bono every three to six months for over two years is a serious investment of time and energy. It makes me wonder if there is something in this case that has touched you personally? That may have driven you to go above and beyond? It's worth reflecting on, as it might offer a clue as to how you could unhook yourself a little.
And that, I think, is what needs to happen - for both your sakes. As a financial adviser, and not a trained therapist, you cannot and should not be her emotional anchor through a gruelling, years-long ordeal. You could however share your concern for her, name the emotional toll this must be taking, and ask if she has family, or someone close, who can offer that kind of support? It might be time to hand a little of that over to them.
Not because you can't continue to support her. You can do so of course, by offering your honest, informed assessment. And you can offer your compassion and care.
But you cannot make this right for her. You cannot rescue her.
Warmly,
Emma
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