Dover

12 June 2018

Information for ex-Dover clients 

Dover has advised ASIC it will cease providing financial services.

As such, Dover clients might look for a new adviser. If you do that you should make sure you are dealing with an adviser authorised by an Australian financial services (AFS) licensee.

If you want to get financial advice and want to continue to use your ex-Dover adviser, you need to make sure they have been authorised by another AFS licensee.  If they have not been authorised or if for other reasons you want to change to a new adviser, you need to make sure that new adviser is authorised by an Australian financial services licensee.

ASIC's MoneySmart website has guidance on how to choose an adviser.

If you are concerned about advice you received from a Dover adviser (during the time they were authorised by Dover), you can consider:

1. referring the matter to Dover via its internal dispute resolution process;
2. referring the matter to Dover’s external dispute resolution provider, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) https://www.afca.org.au/. Dover is a member of AFCA; and/or
3. contacting your current financial advisor or obtaining independent legal advice.

Guidance for ex-Dover advisers

A person cannot give financial advice unless licensed or authorised by an AFS licensee. ASIC understands Dover has revoked the advice authorisation of all its representatives. This means ex-Dover advisers cannot give new advice until authorised by another AFS licensee.

Guidance for AFS licensees considering authorising ex-Dover advisers

In the past, ASIC has warned (warning #1 and warning #2) AFS licensees to ensure they have robust recruitment and monitoring when appointing advisers who have worked for a licensee with a poor compliance history.

ASIC notes any licensee considering authorising an ex-Dover adviser should:

• do background checks before authorising the adviser. When hiring a new adviser ASIC suggests that, at a minimum, licensees receive audit reports and/or reference checks from the previous licensee. In the case of ex-Dover advisers, you should get audit reports and/or a reference from the licensee before Dover and/or do other assessments of the person's competence;
• have arrangements to address deficiencies in the advice from ex-Dover advisers, and
• have heightened oversight (for instance, vet all advice from ex-Dover advisers for a period).