Comment: The dangers of 'friendly' advice

Six months later a letter arrives. It's signed by a friend who was at the pub that night, and a solicitor. You gave faulty advice, it reads, and it's cost them money. The pub is not, one would think, a wise place to impart financial advice. But you're a qualified financial adviser. So, where do you stand if you receive a complaint like this? The CII recently issued what it called a ‘thinking' paper on pro bono work in financial services. Voluntary work, it said, should be seen as equally important in the eyes of consumers as qualifications. But it also said pro bono work is relativ...