The Department of Labor’s new fiduciary proposal potentially stands to complicate a retirement planning industry already marked by consumer confusion, according to survey of advisors and their clients by the Deloitte Center for Financial Services, a research arm of the global consultancy.

As is, 64 percent of the financial advisers surveyed said poor communications from product providers present a barrier to adequate retirement preparation.

Inefficiencies in communication also explain core trust issues between the financial services industry and consumers.

Only 52 percent of surveyed advisers said their clients trust the products they’re offered will help them meet their retirement goals.

While the report is clear that systemic trust issues still exist even after equity markets’ historic bull run, when it comes to trust between clients and their individual advisers, confidence is high.

A full 80 percent of advisers said their clients have a high level of trust for them, and 78 percent of investors agreed: in spite of poor product communications, and even a core distrust of the financial services industry, investors trust their advisers.

Consumers report a sizable improvement in how they perceive their retirement prospects, but a majority is still doubtful of their ability to retire comfortably.

In 2012, only 28 percent said they felt very secure over their retirement prospects.

Now, that number is 45 percent. The improvement is likely a result of improved returns on equity markets, say the report’s authors.

While welcomed, Deloitte’s report speculates that improved sentiment could be fleeting, particularly if stock markets fall off their all-time highs, where they’ve lingered for much of the past half-year.

"Despite a booming stock market and the financial crisis now more of a distant memory, what we hear from most consumers is they are simply not being effectively engaged by financial institutions and their representatives, including a significant segment of those with substantial assets to invest," said Dan Rosshirt, a principal with Deloitte Consulting.

“Financial services firms should take the initiative in a bigger and bolder way, reestablishing their credibility as a provider of solutions rather than primarily product sellers,” he added.

Almost one-third of high earners with a net worth of at last $1 million and nearing retirement age said they don’t use an adviser, primarily because they think they can do a better job of investing their own money.

Of those who said they felt “very secure” about their retirement prospects, 17 percent said they didn’t have an adviser, or a specific retirement plan.

But all in all, those with a formal plan were twice as likely to feel secure about their retirement prospects, compared to those without one.

Instant Insights /

Study says DOL rule could muddle already confused investors

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