Client Testimonials

Classic car enthusiast Gordon Gomery came to Torquil Clark for a review of his pension arrangements. After running his own business for 25 years he was looking to be able to reduce his working hours and ease into retirement.

"Although my pension won’t be my only source of income in retirement, I still wanted to make sure I had the advice of a professional. My accountant had previously advised me on my pension plans, but they are no longer authorised to provide such advice and I needed the help of an expert, so I had to look elsewhere.

Torquil Clark came to my attention because they were running a pensions phone-in with the local newspaper. I saw this as an ideal opportunity to speak to an adviser, find out more about them and what they can do for me before I took their advice. As it turned out, the adviser I spoke to was first class. I liked what he had to say because he was clear and to the point.

I was close to retirement, so the priority was to switch from being fully invested in equities to more cautious funds and cash. Given the stock market volatility that followed, this turned out to be perfect advice.

I have since bought an annuity with my pension fund and passed my business on to my children. I plan to work every so often and the rest of the time I’ll spend on the golf course and travelling.And of course, I will be making the most of my classic car."

After 26 years spent as a teacher and currently in his 13th year as a self-employed consultant, 61-year-old Don Gwinnett had planned to retire when he was 65.

He had accumulated significant funds in a number of pension plans with different providers and wanted help to review them.

"I knew that having a number of pension plans was making it harder for me to control their performance. I was also worried that I was paying more in charges than I needed to. So, given that handling money has never been a strength of mine, I realised I needed the help of a professional.

I'd had bad experiences in the past with other financial advisers who seemed more interested in the money they could make, rather than doing what was best for my future.

A neighbour, who had been a client of theirs for a number of years, recommended Torquil Clark to me. I immediately noticed the difference.

My adviser was attentive, knowledgeable and, most importantly, had a genuine interest in making sure my pension plans were in the best possible shape.

I have a lot of trust in my adviser's capabilities. I've never felt as though I was being pressured into making a decision, instead I have always been presented with advice and recommendations in plain English, so I could understand them.

I plan to keep active when I retire. I've already got a long list of projects that I want to undertake, including voluntary work in the local community. I also plan to regularly visit my daughters and grandchildren who live near to home and in France and Spain. I'm confident that the advice I have been given will enable me to do this."

At the age of 51, Chris Long had changed jobs after 25 years service with the same company and was hoping to be able to retire at the age of 60. He had built up a substantial pension pot in his previous employer’s final salary scheme, but this had been frozen after 22 years service and wouldn’t be available until the age of 65.

“I’d decided long ago that I want to retire when I’m 60 instead of working until I am 65 – there are so many other things I want to do with my life that don’t involve working for someone else. So I did a bit of digging to find out if there were other options available that would allow me to take control of the money in my pension fund. I had already heard of Income Drawdown and was aware that I could take 25% tax-free cash before I came to Torquil Clark for financial advice.

I had never seen an independent financial adviser before and it was a bit of a daunting prospect. But what came across to me immediately was that I could trust this person - and that’s essential, because to get the most out of them you have to share as much information about your circumstances as possible. I found my adviser at Torquil Clark showed a great deal of understanding of my life expectations and my aspirations, which made me feel very comfortable. It is important that you express your aspirations even if you believe they are unobtainable as they may actually be possible to achieve!

Working with an adviser isn’t just a question of having all of the pros, cons and technical pensions jargon explained. I found it gave me the confidence to say ‘let’s do it’. As a result, I have been able to take my tax-free cash and use it as I want and I’ve got control over the rest of my pension fund, with the potential for it to grow until I am 70. As I am still working and enjoying my new job, I can save or invest the income generated from the drawdown plan until I need it, but if that changes I know I don’t have to continue in a job I’m no longer enjoying. It’s really enabled me to make some exciting changes to my lifestyle and given me choices options that weren’t available to me before.”