A complaint has been upheld by the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) against an adviser at Tilney after ruling their advice led to an investor putting money into two separate mini-bond schemes that have since collapsed.
Although each of the Blackmore mini-bond schemes offered investors a return of 10%, many of the property developments never even started to be built. On one occasion, an investor approached a financial adviser at Tilney (now known as Evelyn Partners) via email, asking where to put their money. They were given links to Blackmore Bond and London Capital & Finance LC&F and told that they could expect interest rates of as much as 8.5%. The financial adviser stated that bonds that are fixed-rate were much lower risk than equities and that the two mini-bond schemes were “very good offers”.
However, it turned out that these were not good offers, and LC&F went into administration in 2019. As a result, the investor made a complaint against the financial adviser stating that their advice had caused them to lose money and that the bonds should never have been recommended in the first place as they were not suitable for an inexperienced investor. The claim was rejected by Tilney, stating that the information given by the financial adviser was not financial advice.
The Verdict
The case was taken to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) and a decision was made in favour of the investor, stating that advice was in fact given, even though it may not necessarily have been intended so. In accordance with guidance from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the advice that was given was deemed to be unsuitable and did not take into account the investor’s experience and level of knowledge.
As a result of the ruling, Tilney was ordered to pay compensation to the investor.
Unsuitable Advice
Anyone that had dealings with the company and ended up investing, may have done so as a result of unsuitable financial advice. Where this is the case you should have the transaction reviewed.
Compensation Claim Advice
We offer individuals who may have been mis-sold investments a free and no-obligation consulting service where we provide expert claims advice. Our team will be able to quickly understand your case and determine the best course of action for you. You need to act quickly as there might be time restrictions in place.
Call us now for a phone or video consultation with one of our legal experts on 0800 041 8358 to find out if you are entitled to compensation, you may even be entitled to additional compensation if you have successfully claimed in the past.
