Just 10% of UK adults have paid for financial advice in the last two years, with 79% of those who hadn’t also unlikely to do so in future, according to research from OpenMoney.

The financial advice service found that the figure of 10% is unchanged from 2019, while the percentage of those who were unlikely to pay for advice in the future had risen from 77% in twelve months.

The research, part of OpenMoney’s second annual advice gap report, used a sample of 2,081 adults and indicated that many people find it hard to differentiate between regulated advice and generic guidance – while there is a strong theme of distrust around the impartiality of advice and the value it provides.

For those who revealed they were unlikely to choose to pay for financial advice, when asked what would need to change, 34% of respondents indicated they would need to be sure it would save them money overall, while 22% said they would need to earn more.

Another 28% said they would need to trust the advice, 18% would need to be sure how to pick the right advice, and 15% revealed that it would need to cost less. OpenMoney stated that the findings were broadly in line with the 2019 research.

OpenMoney CEO, Anthony Morrow, commented: “Despite the negative perceptions of financial advice, when people take specialist money advice the vast majority have a good experience. If the industry is to close the advice gap and help improve people’s financial futures, we first need to tackle the perception gap.

“All too often when people think of financial advice, they think ‘expensive’, ‘untrustworthy’ and ‘scam’. Changing these negative associations and promoting the positive work our industry does is crucial to ensuring that more people access regulated financial advice and make the most of their money today and for the long-term.”

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