Here is what to do if you would like to ensure that your investment account is not used as a dumping ground for ill conceived or poorly constructed, high commission investment products.
Write a letter to your investment firm, and state that you are assuming they will act in YOUR interests, and not in the interests of the firm and the salesman. Tell them you are RELYING on the advertising promise of YOU FIRST or TRUST US or any of the many forms of advertising that the industry uses to gain clients.
Tell them another three or four things which tend to be used in court to determine if they owe you a duty of care:
Tell them you trust them to act professionally and in your interests.
Tell them you are vulnerable to the different levels of knowledge they posess verses yourself on matters such as fees, returns, risks.
Tell them you trust that they will honor and follow BEST practices in matters of codes of ethics, mission statements, and professional rules and regulations.
Above all tell them you are NOT looking for a salesman, or a relationship of buyer beware. You may not grant them discretion (total authority) over your account, but that aside from this one aspect, the other four tests of duty are involved, and you expect them to act in your interests, not firstly theirs.
Sadly, if you fail to clarify these expectations, you may be in a position of many seniors, who after being taken advantage of by salespersons posing as advisors, faced a legal defense that depends on the above to tell the client that "they did not owe you a duty of care". (contrary to what the advertising and codes say)
If you fail to get a satisfactory response, a response where the firm seems to understand, agree and admit that they owe you (the customer) a duty of professional care, then you must ask yourself the questions. The questions are: How is this response different from the promises that their advertising contains? Does it coincide or contradict?
If the advertising promise differs from the duty of care response, then you may be dealing with a firm whose words do not match their deeds. Buyer beware if that is the case.
for further info on what the industry claims when push comes to shove see case law such as:
Cosgrove V RBC
Hunt V TD Waterhouse
cases found at
www.investorvoice.ca