FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q1. Who owns my clients?
You own your clients. The Dover representative contract clearly states that Dover can only contact your clients as is necessary to comply with the Corporations Act and related legislation and regulations.
This makes it clear that you own your clients. Have you checked your existing AFSL contract? You may be surprised at what it says. Many contracts state that the AFSL owns the clients and restrict the planners ability to deal with the clients without the consent of the AFSL. If you leave Dover we cooperate fully with your new AFSL and make sure your clients experience a smooth and hassle free transition with all relevant bulk transfer documents signed without any fuss.
Q2. What support does Dover provide?
Dover emphasizes ASIC compliance but goes beyond this to provide you with as much technical, marketing and practice development support as you need.The Dover Profit Improvement Scheme is designed to help you transition your practice to the new fee for service (ie no commissions) regime marked for 1 July 2013, and our para-planners can take away the responsibility of drafting statements of advice from you, freeing you up for value addin activities and practice development.
Our legal team and our superannuation team offer technical support and services. We can back office your insurance services for you. We provide extensive compliance support and training. Our tax consultants are here to help you too.
We can provide you with the technical support you need to maximize the service you provide to your clients. We doubt you will find this depth anywhere else.
Dover also provides RG 146 training and similar training to all advisors and their staff at nil cost.
Q3. Why are Dover's costs so low?
Dover is part of an efficient and well resourced financial services group. We do not employ large teams on large salaries to market unnecessary services to you. We stay lean and focussed on what we do best. This allows us to minimize our costs and maintain maximum value for our representatives.
Our fees are just $1,000 per month including GST, and no one else provides the support we do at close to this price. There are discounts for larger groups: normally the second and further advisors are just $6,000 a year including GST.
And our innovative $3,000 SMSF only proper authority represents the best value possible for accountants involved in the SMSF industry.
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Q4. Does Dover get paid by anyone else?
No. Dover does not get paid by anyone else. Dover does not receive any payments or any other benefits from any person other than its representatives.
Can you current AFSL dealer say this? Most AFSL are owned by just a few large financial institutions, which means there will always be pressure to recommend financial products created by those institutions.
Being a Dover representative frees you from these pressures and allows you to offer a better and more professional service to your clients.
Q5. What about training?
Dover provides extensive RG 146 training to all advisors and aspirant advisors: check out the training information section on this website for details of how this works.The training emphasises both technical compliance issues and creative ways for you to provide better services to your clients, at the same time increasing your profits and market value.
Our training also emphasises transitioning to the fee for service model.
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Q6. What are the professional indemnity insurance arrangements?
Dover has $20,000,000 of insurance cover, with a $10,000 excess. The cost averages out to be about $2,300 per year per advisor. Dover pays this premium and then recovers the costs back from each advisor. The premium is low because of of Dover's claim free track record, high compliance standards and rules against high risk products such as agri-investments.Most professional indemnity claims are connected to these high risk products: eliminating them from the Dover approved product list means all Dover representatives save money with lower insurance premiums.
Aspirant advisors are welcome to sight a certificate of currency before joining Dover.
Why should you pay high insurance premiums now because your current AFSL allowed inappropriate products and strategies in earlier years?
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Q7. Who owns Dover?
Dover is beneficially owned by the directors of McMasters' Accountants, Financial Planners and Solicitors, the largest firm specializing in doctors and dentists in Australia. Visit www.mcmasters.com.au to learn more about the McMasters' group of businesses.
The McMasters' team includes more than seventy highly trained professional accountants, solicitors and financial planners, making Dover one of the best resourced AFSL holders in Australia.
Dover has no connections with any financial institutions. This means there is no pressure to recommend branded products or do anything that is not in the best interests of your clients.
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Q8. Who keeps my commissions?
You keep 100% of your commissions.
Dover does not keep any commissions. All commissions are paid on to the representative within two weeks of receipt by Dover. Dover receives these amounts on trust for its advisors and then passes them on. 100%: Dover does not clip your income.
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Q9. Can Dover help me grow my business?
Dover helps you grow your business.
We have real life practical experience setting up and running successful financial planning, accounting and legal practices. We know what we are doing and have done it before. We can help you grow and develop your practice too, particularly under the new "no commissions" environment applying from 1 July 2013 on.
Dover's principal, Terry McMaster, has extensive experience in creating and developing financial services businesses and is available to help you make the most of your practice.
The Dover Practice Improvement Program is an essential part of growing your business and creating extra value for you and your family.
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Q10. What is the Dover approved product list?
Dover uses the BT margin lending list as its approved product list, as well as most cash based investments and industry and managed superannuation funds.
Dover looks at financial products not on the BT margin lending on a case by case basis on the request of individual representatives.
Dover's APL also includes most popular cash management facilities and industry superannuation funds. Dover also adds additional products to the APL for individual advisors on request: conditions apply, but we do out best to help you provide the best possible service to your clients.
BT Margin Lending - Approved Listed Securities
BT Margin Lending - Approved Securities List - Managed Funds
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Q11. Do I have to use specific platforms?
No. You do not have to use specific platforms and you may use whichever platform or platforms you prefer, or none at all. Its your choice.Top of page
Q12. Do I have to use specific SOA programs?
No. You do not have to use specific SOA preparation programs. In fact we prefer you do not use any SOA programs because they generally lack the professionalism and insight to meet Dover's standards.
Q13. Does the Dover model suit fee for service billing?
Yes. The Dover model suits fee for service billing. In fact our largest representatives have used the fee for service billing model for years.
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Q14. How do I charge my clients?
You can charge your clients how you want to charge your clients.
Dover allows you to do whatever you want.
Our only requirement is for you to comply with the statement of advice disclosure rules at all times.
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Q15. Are there any product pushes?
Dover does not push products.
There is no pressure whatsoever to recommend any particular product or brand. And Dover does not benefit from any decision you make: there are no unethical relationships between any financial institutions and Dover.
This means you can run your practice the way you want to to run your practice without any inappropriate interference.
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Q16. Will Dover help me change over from my current AFSL?
Yes. Dover will help you change over from your current AFSL.
We have done this many times and we have a team of staff trained to help you transition easily.
Our experienced administrative team helps each new representative transition their clients over from their old dealer group, and generally makes sure all goes smoothly. We do it al the time and have become quite good at it.
Q17. How does Dover audit its representatives?
Dover emphasizes ASIC compliance and has a number of audit and compliance programs in place,A feature of the Dover experience is a quality check on every statement of advice prepared by each representative, which means you get immediate feedback on compliance issues before the advice process is completed.
Dover has a committed compliance and audit team who are not involved in other Dover activities and who are there to make sure you get your compliance right each time.
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Q18. Does Dover provide para-planning support?
Dover has a team of expert para-planners who can help you satisfy all relevant legal requirements as well as achieve best industry practice in presentation and technical skill and competency. Our para-planners are expert financial planners in their own right and each have more than two years intensive experience with complex statements of advice for high wealth clients with demanding and varied needs. They are all Melbourne University Commerce and law faculty graduates, many have Masters degree and all are either qualified CPA or CAs, or financial planners or are completing their professional study programs.
The Dover Experience allows our para-planning statements of advice to cover all relevant investment and business issues effecting your clients. This includes insurances, investments, property, business structures, estate planning, legal issues, and superannuation particularly self-managed superannuation funds. The Dover Experience increases the depth and understanding of your SOAs and presents you as the primary advisor to your clients on all relevant issues.
The Dover para-planning service is supervised by experienced and expert solicitors and financial planners to ensure each SOA, FSOA or ROA is fully compliant with all Corporations Act 2001 and ASIC requirements.
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