Your letters to us

This week, we received many letters about our coverage on advisor compensation, individual pension plans and the Earl Jones saga. Here is what some of you had to say on the subject.

Re: Compensation does not determine good advice, readers say, July 10, 2009

Reader Shawn Flannigan writes as if he doesn’t get a fee for service. Of course he does. It’s just embedded in the management fee. The trailer on a mutual fund is as much or more than what the average advisor charges in fees. Read more.

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Those dealing with high-end clients perhaps have the luxury of using a fee-only model, but many family-oriented advisors may ultimately use a combination compensation model: part commission and part fees. Read more.

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Re: Montreal “advisor” fraud could top $50 million, July 13, 2009

Why are the terms “advisor-initiated fraud” and “retail advisor” used when he is not an advisor? Hanging a sign out and creating some business cards and letterhead does not make a person a doctor, lawyer or an advisor. If a person hung a sign saying they were a gynecologist and assaulted a large number of women, would the article say that this might be the largest incident of a doctor assaulting his patients? Read more.

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Professionals of every respected industry have licences, certifications and professional oversight bodies of compliance and review boards of some sort. This may even include the Better Business Bureau and other organizations. Anyone working outside of this framework should never be trusted or used under any circumstances. No matter how good they claim to be or at what they do. Read more.

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Re: When not to IPP, July 13, 2009

Advisor.ca’s recent article on IPPs reinforces many of the commonly held misconceptions that surround Individual Pension Plans. As a member of a firm that has established almost 2,000 IPPs across Canada, I deal with these myths everyday. Read more.

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Do you agree or disagree with these readers? E-mail your thoughts for future publication on Advisor.ca to editor@advisor.ca.

(07/17/09)