Terms & Conditions

Shirley Hughes Financial Services

A trading style of Protection & Investment Ltd.

Client Agreement

  1. Commencement Date

    This Client Agreement comes into effect on the date you receive it from us.

  2. Our Company

    Protection & Investment Ltd are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Our FCA number is 222993. You can check this on the FCA’s Register at www.fca.org.uk/register or by contacting the FCA on 0845 606 1234.

  3. Our Services

    We offer an initial discussion (at our expense) when we will describe our services more fully and explain any charges. If you decide to go ahead, we will:

    • Gather and analyse personal information about you, your finances, your needs and objectives;

    • Recommend and discuss any action we think you should take and, with your agreement, arrange relevant mortgage and insurances as appropriate. If we identify requirements outside of mortgages and insurance we will either agree a course of action or, with your agreement, refer you to an appropriately authorised adviser.

  4. How much does it cost?

    Mortgages: We will receive a procuration fee from the mortgage lender for arranging your mortgage with them. You will receive a Key Facts Illustration Plus (KFI+) or a European Standardised Information Sheet (ESIS) which will inform you of any remuneration paid by the mortgage lender. You have the right to request an illustration or ESIS for any mortgage product we offer. You have the right to ask us to confirm the procuration fees offered by the other lenders considered prior to making our final recommendation.

    We charge a fee in respect of mortgage advice; this will be payable by you on submission of a mortgage application. This will be a fixed fee of £249, although there may be a higher charge for more complex advice. If we charge you this fee and the mortgage does not go ahead, you will not receive a refund. We will make you aware of these fees in advance.

    Insurance: We will receive commission from the product provider. You will be provided with a personal quotation which discloses the level of commission to be paid to us.

  5. What products do we advise on?

    We advise on regulated mortgage contracts that are used for a non-business and business purposes. We are not limited in the range of mortgages we will consider for you and can offer you advice on both first and second charge loans. We do not offer deals that you can only obtain by going direct to a lender. If you would like to know what insurance products we offer, please ask. We are an insurance intermediary advising on insurance products from across a range of insurers. In respect of general insurance, home insurance for example, we only advise on a restricted panel of providers.

  6. We do not handle client money

    Any payments related directly to the plan recommended must be made payable directly to the product provider.

  7. Data Protection & Records

    Your data is processed in accordance with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements, for more information please refer to our Privacy Notice.

    With your consent we may collect your data from institutions with which you currently have contracts and insurance policies, from your employer or professional advisers. We may obtain data from credit reference agencies.

  8. Means of Communication

    We will enter into communication with you through whatever means are convenient to you including face-to-face, telephone, paper, e-mail and other acceptable electronic communication methods. This information will be provided free of charge.

    You may at any time choose to request information in paper and free of charge that has previously been provided to you by means other than paper. For example, where a communication was originally sent by email.

    You may at any time choose to change your preferences as to how we communicate with you. However, where you choose to do this, we will require you to confirm this change in writing to us.

  9. Anti-Money Laundering

    We are required by the anti-money laundering regulations to verify the identity of our clients, to obtain information as to the purpose and nature of the business which we conduct on their behalf and to ensure that the information we hold is up-to-date. For this purpose, we use electronic identity verification systems and we may conduct these checks from time to time throughout our relationship, not just at the beginning. Your details are checked against data held on external and independent databases. This will not affect your credit rating. A record of the check will be kept on your client file.

  10. Conflict of Interest

    Occasions may arise where the firm, an employee, or other associates of the firm has competing professional or personal interests, which may prevent these services being provided to clients in an independent or impartial manner.

    Protection & Investment Ltd takes all appropriate steps to prevent conflict of interest from occurring, in line with the firm’s conflict of interest policy. However, there may be occasions where a conflict of interest cannot be prevented. Where this is the case, we will disclose the nature of the conflict and the steps we will take to mitigate the risk that you will be treated unfairly as a result of any conflict identified.

    We will make you aware of any conflict of interest before the provision of services, to enable you to choose whether you still wish to proceed. A copy of the firm’s conflict of interest policy is available on request.

  11. What to do if you have a complaint

    If you wish to register a complaint please contact our Compliance Manager at Protection & Investment Ltd, Chandlers House, Ganders Business Park, Kingsley, Hants, GU35 9LU; by telephone on 01420 470241 or by email on robert.cameron@pil.uk.com. If you cannot settle your complaint with us, you may be entitled to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

  12. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)

    We are covered by the FSCS. You may be entitled to compensation from the scheme if we cannot meet our obligations. This depends on the type of business and the circumstances of the claim. The FSCS also covers you in the event of lenders/providers failing.

    Home Finance – up to £85,000 per eligible person, per firm that fails.

    Insurance - 100% of the claim, per firm that fails.

    More in-depth information about compensation scheme arrangements is available from the FSCS.

  13. How can this agreement be terminated?

    You, or we, may terminate our authority to act on your behalf at any time without penalty.  Notice of this termination must be given in writing. It will be deemed to be received 2 business days after being posted. Any business currently being completed will be completed unless we receive your instructions to the contrary.  Any fees outstanding at the date of termination will be due within four weeks of the termination date.

  14. Law

    This Client Agreement is governed and shall be construed in accordance with English law and the parties shall submit to the jurisdiction of the English Courts.

    You will be sent a copy of these Terms & Conditions for signature prior to your consultation.