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Financial Services Guide

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Please find a Financial Services Guide (FSG) for Gregory Sernack on behalf of Gregory Sernack Financial Services Pty Ltd to provide general financial advice for Financial Planning and Superannuation. The purpose of the FSG is to ensure that you as retail clients receive key information about the type of services being offered by a financial service provider. The provisions relating to FSGs are based on requirements currently applying under both the Corporations Law and life insurance regimes, but extend the requirements to the offering of financial services in respect of all financial products.

As a general rule, the FSG must be given to the retail client as soon as practicable after it becomes apparent to the service provider that the financial service will be provided to the client. The FSG must be given to the client before the financial service is provided.

6.1 Kinds of financial services offered by the service provider, including the range of financial products to which those services relate are for general non-specific product advice regarding Financial Planning and Superannuation. A copy of the grant of license is available on the ASIC registry of Licensees for professional membership number 484657. Alternately clients can ask for a copy of the license.

6.2 Information about for whom the service provider acts when providing financial services. We do not act for any third parties in the provision for financial advice. Gregory Sernack Financial Services Pty Ltd may be engaged to provide further services that are considered accounting services and do not require advice by agreement between the parties

6.3 The means by which the service provider is remunerated for the services being offered to the retail client is by an hourly agreed rate initially.

The new regime requires disclosure of remuneration including commission, fees and charges at three points in the life cycle of a financial services transaction  FSG, Statement of Advice and Product Disclosure Statement however Gregory Sernack only receives the agreed hourly rate.

• The client does not have to pay an upfront fee for the financial service.

  • Where an upfront fee or hourly rate is charged, the service provider will be required to disclose the dollar amount of the upfront fee or the dollar amount of the hourly rate of $125.00 GST inclusive.
  • No commission is receivable from a specific product. The client may request particulars of any commission or other remuneration or benefit received by the financial service provider in respect of any dealing.

    Information about the internal and external dispute resolution procedures to which the client has access is provided externally by the Financial Ombudsmen Service Member No 37586 (See related licensing section 883A.)

    Disclosure requirements where personal advice provided to a retail client

6.4 These provisions only apply where personal advice (as defined in proposed section 766B) is provided to a retail client. Requirement to have a reasonable basis for advice

6.5 Where personal advice is provided to a retail client, the service provider must have a reasonable basis for that advice. (See proposed section 914A.)

6.6 In providing personal advice, the service provider is required to ascertain the client’s objectives, financial situation and needs; investigate and consider the options available to the client; and base the advice on that consideration and investigation.

6.7 There will be no obligation on a service provider to provide personal advice. A service provider from whom personal advice is sought may decline to provide the advice (and of course, where the service provider’s license or authorization does not cover the provision of advice, would be obliged to decline to give the advice).

There is an obligation to warn client if advice based on incomplete or inaccurate information however as the advice is of a general nature, clients should also make their own enquiries as to the suitability of information provided.

Requirement for a Statement of Advice to be given

6.8 Where a retail client is given personal advice, the service provider must provide a Statement of Advice. The Statement of Advice may be the means by which advice is given, or a separate record of the advice. (See proposed section 915A.)

Timing of giving Statement of Advice

6.9 As a general rule, if the Statement of Advice is given separately to the advice, the Statement of Advice must be given to the client when the advice is provided or as soon as practical.

Failure to provide a Statement of Advice

6.10 It will be an offence to fail to provide a Statement of Advice where required.

DISCLAIMER

Gregory Sernack is licensed to provide advice under a Limited Australian Financial Services License in Financial Planning and Superannuation. Information provided is of a general nature and is based on factual information and is not intended to imply a recommendation or opinion about a financial product.

Please be advised that (a) that the advice has been prepared without taking into account clients objectives, financial situation or needs; (b) the client should, therefore, consider the appropriateness of the advice, in light of their own objectives, financial situation or needs, before acting on the advice; and (c) the advice does not relate to the acquisition, or possible acquisition, of a particular financial product. If the client is considering a particular product, the client should obtain a Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) (if required) relating to the product and consider the PDS before making any decision about whether to acquire the product: s949A (2).

The general statement of advice is limited to a 30 day period as changes will occur in financial markets and the law and would then be automatically subject to review. It is recommended that the client monitor and review any statement of advice regularly.

PRIVACY STATEMENT

We are committed to protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of any personal information that we collect from you, whether that information is provided in written form, verbally or over the Internet. In collecting and handling your personal information, we abide by the National Privacy Principles (“NPPs”) established under the Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act 2001. More detailed information regarding the treatment of personal information is available

From the Privacy Commissioner’s website www.privacy.gov.au