I do not agree with the argument that advisers could be replaced by robo-advisers (FTAdviser, 11 Feb).
Robo advice will serve the people we do not want, that is, the obnoxious types who want everything but do not want to pay anything. That is fine by me. I recently had a call from someone who had been on a robo-advice site and said he was ringing me because it had told him he needed to speak to an adviser.
Without further ado he proceeded to demand answers to a string of questions. When I politely tried to elicit some basic information (his name and approximate geographical location) he asked “Look do you want the business or not?”, to which I replied “Not” and hung up.
There is no shortage of nice people to look after. We treat clients with respect and expect the same in return. Anyone who thinks they can treat me or my staff like a doormat gets short shrift.
Neil Liversidge
Managing director,
West Riding Personal Financial Solutions,
Castleford,
West Yorkshire
