The average 12-person financial adviser firm loses £85,000 to problems caused by poor service from platforms, according to new research.
Firms are losing around 4 hours a week dealing with the problems, equating to £85,000 a year in lost output (where advisers’ time is valued by what they earn rather than what they cost), according to new research from platform and DFM Parmenion in partnership with consultancy TheLangCat. This equates to roughly 10% of the firm’s time per week, according to the report.
Parmenion and TheLangCat’s 'Impact of Poor Service' report asked 1,700 advisers for their views on platform service.
The report found that 90% of advice firms had to apologise to at least one client as the result of poor service from platforms this year.
Common adviser complaints where late annual review reports, poor co-operation from ‘zombie fund’ providers, or support tickets being closed without resolution.
Issues were often caused by platforms advisers had inherited rather than ones they had chosen themselves. The worst service for many firms was found in legacy and secondary books and old pensions and bonds a firm inherited rather than chose.
Advisers have been taking action as a result of poor service, with 45% having changed platform providers due to poor service.
Martin Jennings, CEO of Parmenion, said: “The honest headline this year is that the market has done enough to stop the rot, and not a great deal more. But ‘no longer getting worse’ is a low bar, and I don’t think any of us came into this industry to clear low bars.
“This year’s research shows that poor service comes at a cost beyond lost time, ongoing frustration and client dissatisfaction, and these costs ultimately find their way back to clients.”
• The ‘Impact of Poor Service’ study saw TheLangCat use insights from its panel of 1,700 members of the advice profession on behalf of Parmenion. It combined a quantitative survey that tracks the same core measures each wave with a qualitative phase of in-depth interviews. Fieldwork was conducted in late September and early October 2026.