Advice could end up saving you a lot of money in the future
If you are not sure whether, or which, investment companies might be suitable for you, you should consider talking to a financial adviser. They can talk over your situation, needs and recommend appropriate investments. Though you will need to pay the adviser for their time, it could save you a lot of money in the future.
If you invest without advice, you will need to select and buy your own investment companies. You can either do this by buying shares directly through a stockbroker or an online share dealing service, or you can invest via a wrapper scheme.
Wrappers can be a valuable way to protect your investments from tax.
Wrapper schemes are not investments in themselves. They are a way to buy and hold shares and other investments easily and cheaply. Often they offer tax breaks to encourage people to save and invest.
There are several different types of wrapper schemes:
ISAs
Personal pensions (SIPPs)
Investments for children (Junior ISAs and Child Trust Funds)
You can find details of all the wrapper schemes run by the AIC’s members and their managers on the AIC’s website. Alternatively, there are many online share dealing sites which offer these types of scheme.
Depending on the type of wrapper scheme you choose, you can choose to save regularly – from as little as £25 per month. Regular savings are an excellent way of reducing the risks of stock market investment. You can use them to put away a little each month, invest large sums gradually to smooth out stock market fluctuations or ease into riskier investments.
