Chartered Financial Planning firm Fairstone has launched a digital “no-contact” remote advice for advisory firms.

The service will enable the removal of ‘person to person’   contact - if required - from the Financial Planning process if firms want a full “no-contact” environment.

The Newcastle-based wealth management firm believes it is one of the first national firms to launch an entirely remote advice process.

Fairstone’s ZETO (zero touch) solution uses Microsoft Teams video calling and includes a pre-meeting digital introduction to the process as well as customisable presentation and guidance tools.

Functionality includes an embedded e-signature solution integrated with Adobe Sign which enables end-to-end paperless processing, says Fairstone.

Fairstone says ZETO provides the ability to screen share, transfer files, execute documents and see illustrations in real-time, as well as recording sessions and appending notes.

Fairstone has launched the service in response to the Coronavirus pandemic and says it follows recent research it carried out among consumers and its own advisers.

The research, via social media, found that 88% of consumers would be happy to have virtual meetings with their advisers.

Consumers polled added that the things that would reassure them most when taking part in a virtual meeting were being able to see who they were talking to (66%) and the security of the application being used (24%).

Meanwhile advisers polled in a separate survey revealed that their clients stated they preferred a mix of face-to-face and remote meetings, with 49% saying that they like face-to-face interaction and 33% stating that they prefer remote meetings.

Fairstone chief executive Lee Hartley said: “While face-to-face and direct contact with clients will always remain at the core of our business, technology can allow advisers to work more efficiently and spend more time with clients.

“Championing a new innovative world of working, which seamlessly combines first-class remote and real-life practices, will enable us as a firm to embrace the best of both worlds.

“ZETO reinforces Fairstone’s commitment to making wellbeing a priority, supporting new and existing clients in a zero-touch environment without any interruption to operational output or most importantly, service levels.”