Only half of people would ever consider taking advice (51%) but only a third said it was because they already knew what they were doing (35%), research from Hargreaves Lansdown has found.
When asked why the cost was an issue, with 29% saying it was too expensive and 28% saying they didn’t have enough money to make it worthwhile.
One in five people don’t trust advisers (21%) while more than one in 20 (7%) didn’t want to sign up for the long-term.
Of those who would take advice, they were most likely to say they wanted help with their finances generally, followed by wanting to plan their retirement income, and wanting help with investment.
Sarah Coles, senior personal finance analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Financial advice myths could be costing us dear.
“Only half of us would consider the possibility of taking advice, and while it’s not going to be right for everyone at every stage in life, there’s a risk that an awful lot of us are being led astray by assumptions and misunderstandings about what’s involved.
Willingness to take advice
“The younger people are, the more likely they are to consider taking advice at some stage, with 58% of those aged 16-24 considering it, along with 56% of those aged 25 to 44. This may be because it’s clearer to younger people that they have responsibility for their financial security – including their retirement – from the outset, and may feel they could do with some help from a professional.
“They’re also more likely to realise there’s plenty of life ahead of them, so they don’t yet know what the future holds.
“Men were more likely to consider getting advice than women – at 54% compared to 48%. This may well be due to the fact that on average they earn more, because we also found that higher earners were more likely to consider taking advice than those on lower incomes.
“Of those who said they wouldn’t take advice, one in three said it was because they already knew what they were doing, so there was no need.
“And while it makes no sense for people to speak to an adviser when they’re already on top of every aspect of their finances, there are clearly still an awful lot of people who could do with the help but have been put off by common financial advice myths.”
The figures were from a survey of 2,000 people in April 2022 by Opinium for HL.
