Missed ! Now, How to pick yourself up ?

Missed! Now, how to pick yourself up?
BUYERS now have another 'beware' to add to their long list. Beware of those who call themselves financial advisers.
Well, with faith in banks shattered, what else would you expect?
Trust no one now?
Mercifully, it's not that grim. You can still turn to the Financial Industry Dispute Resolution Centre (FIDReC) for help.
When contacted, former NTUC Income CEO Tan Kin Lian, who has been helping affected investors in his private capacity, feels that brokerages and financial advisory firms should share the responsibility, together with their clients.
He said: 'How can brokerages sell a risky product, then say that they are merely order-executors? Similarly, the financial advisers cannot make themselves out to be advisers, yet not make their roles as introducers clear to their clients.
'I cannot sell a drug which causes the people who take it to die, then say that it is not my fault. I have to make sure that the medicine I sell is okay.'
He said: 'It would be fair if the customer bears 50per cent, while the brokerage and the financial advisers bear 25 per cent each of the losses.'
Can't afford, don't buy
Mr David Gerald, president and chief executive of the Securities Investors Association of Singapore, said: 'We live in a buyer beware market, people have to be responsible for the choices they make.
'So, I always advise investors that if they do not understand the product, don't touch it. If they cannot afford it, don't buy it.'
He said that the elderly couple mentioned in the report on page 2 have two means of recourse: FIDReC or a civil suit.
At FIDReC, mediation is free, and legally-trained people will be able to advise the couple, said MrGerald.
They could also engage a lawyer, he said, but he felt it was not advisable to do so, as it was an expensive process, and they might end up paying the legal costs of the other party if they lose the suit.
The learning point is that it's not enough just to know the product you are buying now.
You also need to know who you are buying from.
Ask if independent financial advisers are only 'introducing' you to a product.
Compare this to, say, bank relationship managers who 'advise' you to buy the same product.
Not knowing the difference between the two roles can really cost you.
Getting your money back is about proving mis-selling.
Put simply, it's about proving you were given bad, wrong, or unsuitable advice.
Some independent financial advisers may even produce a document you signed, confirming they were 'introducers' - a document which, you realise too late, actually absolves them from responsibility if things go wrong.
What if you argue that some of the things said to you during the 'introduction' sounded like advice?
Well, it's your word against theirs, always difficult on either side to prove.
So how about the brokerage companies that these clients get 'introduced' to, to buy the product from?
Sorry, we were just 'executing' the order, say some of the companies. We didn't 'advise' you either. So don't blame us.
The numbers are telling. Among those who bought from stockbroking firms, only just over 10 per cent received any settlement.
The lesson for the small-time investor is this: Make it clear that you're seeking advice. Put it in writing. Fill the questionnaires to make your concerns known. Keep copies.
Trust no one, I say.

Tay Shi'an
Mon, Feb 02, 2009The New Paper