"Our research reveals the pandemic appears to have created a pronounced opportunity for advisers to provide advice to younger audiences."
Of these, a third (33%) have already sought financial advice and 20% are planning to. Even of those who say they aren’t seeking financial advice, 15% say they might in the future.
The research comes as an overwhelming 85% of respondents say they have financial concerns when thinking about the next 12 months, with 23% of respondents having to dig into savings for living costs. Furthermore, investments losing money (20%) and having a reduced income (18%) are most concerning.
17% are worried about losing their jobs, 14% about social care of health costs, and 11% about getting into debt.
The report also revealed that the need for financial advice was felt greatest among the younger generations, with 74% of millennials saying they had or were going to see an adviser, and 58% for Gen Z, driven by ‘getting into financial difficulty’ and ‘wanting to start their investment journey’.
While still pronounced, the need for advice decreases slightly with age, with 32% of Gen X, 21% of Boomers and a quarter (24%) of the 75+ age group saying the crisis specifically had driven them to seek advice.
Vince Smith-Hughes, director of specialist business support at Prudential UK, said: “It’s been a challenging 12 months for UK adults up and down the country and this has stimulated the need for advice, be it because of pent-up cash levels, market volatility or job security. While the need for advice spans all generations, our research reveals the pandemic appears to have created a pronounced opportunity for advisers to provide advice to younger audiences.
“While many assume cost is a barrier to advice, this does not appear to be the case in Covid-times – for any of the five generations interviewed. In fact, only 3% of the sample overall said they’d like to see an adviser but couldn’t afford to. Hopefully this research also acts as a wake-up call to those who don’t currently take advice that many of them could benefit from doing so.”
