How to check a financial adviser on the FCA Register

Go to register.fca.org.uk — the Financial Services Register, free and public. Search the firm's name (authorisation belongs to firms; individual advisers appear connected to them). You're confirming four things: the firm exists on the Register, its status says authorised, its permissions cover the advice you're seeking, and the contact details match the ones you were given.

That last one is the scam-killer. Clone fraudsters copy real firms' names and registration numbers, changing only the phone and email. Always call back on the number from the Register, not from the paperwork.

The entry lists permissions (what activities the firm may perform), trading names, and disciplinary history where it exists. 'Appointed representative' means the firm acts under another authorised firm's umbrella — legitimate and common, and the Register shows you the principal responsible. No entry at all, a lapsed status, or permissions that don't match the service being sold: walk away, whatever the explanation offered. The FCA also publishes warning lists of known clones and unauthorised firms — worth a search while you're there.

The Register is necessary, not sufficient — it screens for legitimacy, not excellence. Layer on the human checks: qualifications (Chartered or Certified status signals higher study), how the adviser is paid, and ideally an introduction from a professional who knows them — an accountant's referral carries information no database holds. Two minutes of checking plus one trusted introduction filters better than either alone.