Nigel & Jane

Nigel:

Hi, I’m Nigel, and this is my wife, Jane. We’ve been clients of DS Howell for about five years. Arron Sharkey took over our business from our previous adviser, who he used to work for.

Jane:

We’ve approached him with several quandaries, and he’s been very creative, enterprising and hard-working. He’s always been very responsive. We take ages and ages to make decisions about things – we’re hopeless. But he’s been really patient.

Nigel:

I would also like to add that at my age, I’ve dealt with a lot of financial advisers over the years. A lot of them have been driven by commissions, which is how the old system used to work. Whereas Arron provides a very professional approach to everything and is not driven by how to make the most commission. Instead, it’s about what’s best for the client.

I have I found his approach very refreshing and honest.

Jane:

When the previous financial adviser retired, that was our opportunity to stop and think and work out what we wanted to do. That is, whether we wanted to go with somebody else, or to go with Arron, who had recently joined the business. We liked Arron and trusted him, and I think that trust is integral..

Nigel:

We’re currently looking at giving some funds to the grandchildren, and he’s currently advising us on the best way of doing that to minimise Inheritance Tax and other taxes.

He has a sufficient team of people, so if you ask them to do something, they do it, and they do it on time. In fact, they’re usually chasing us, which is a refreshing change. Because when you get older, your brain isn’t as good as it was when you were younger. Well, certainly mine isn’t.

Jane:

He’s taken quite a lot of trouble to correctly work out what is best for us, and what we feel is best for us.

Nigel:

I think that’s true. That, in my view, is one of the DS Howell’s strengths.

Jane:

The three words I would use to describe DS Howell are reliable, responsive, and enterprising.

Nigel:

The best thing about working with DS Howell, as far as I’m concerned as someone in my late 70s, is not having to worry about managing our money any more. They do it for us. The last thing you want when you get older is stress. I mean, there’s enough stress around the world at the moment. I feel totally relaxed and don’t worry about our finances.

I would always recommend DS Howell, and have done to other people, because I find their approach refreshing and honest. They take the time to work out what you want from your funds and your life, and will tailor their recommendations to what you want, which I find very refreshing.