Terms of Business – Effective from August 2022
New Star Financial Management Ltd
These Terms of Business set out the general terms under which our firm will provide business services to you and the respective duties and responsibilities of both the firm and you in relation to such services. Please ensure that you read these terms thoroughly and if you have any queries, we will be happy to clarify them. If any material changes are made to these terms, we will notify you.
Authorisation with the Central Bank of Ireland
New Star Financial Management Ltd is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland as an insurance intermediary registered under the European Communities (Insurance Mediation) Regulations, 2005 as amended; as an Investment Intermediary authorised to provide the investment instruments insurance policies, tracker bonds and Collective Investments under the Investment Intermediaries Act, 1995 as amended. New Star Financial Management Ltd is also authorised as a Mortgage Credit Intermediary established and maintained by the Central Bank of Ireland pursuant to the European Union (Consumer Mortgage Credit Agreements) Regulations 2016.
Copies of our regulatory authorisations are available on request. The Central Bank of Ireland holds registers of regulated firms. You may contact the Central Bank of Ireland on 1890 777 777 or alternatively visit their website at www.centralbank.ie to verify our credentials.
Codes of Conduct
New Star Financial Management Ltd is subject to the Consumer Protection Code 2012, Minimum Competency Code 2011, Handbook of Prudential Requirements for Investment Intermediaries 2014 and Fitness & Probity Standards 2011 which offer protection to consumers. These Codes can be found on the Central Bank’s website www.centralbank.ie
Our Services
New Star Financial Management Ltd is a member of Brokers Ireland (B.I.). As a member of Brokers Ireland we must be in a position to place insurance with at least five insurers of the relevant form (life/non-life) and therefore can generally give consumers greater choice than agents and tied agents.
Our principal business is to provide advice and arrange transactions on behalf of clients in relation to mortgage/life & protection products as well as Savings, Investments and general insurance products. A full list of insurers, product producers and lending agencies which we deal is available on request as well as on our website.
New Star Financial Management Ltd. provides Market Based Advice which means that:
- the principal regulated activities of the firm are provided on the basis of a fair analysis of the market; and
- you have the option to pay in full for our services by means of a
Taking due account of the size, nature and scale of our activities when providing the Investment advice and Insurance based Investment advice we will not consider the adverse impacts of investment decisions on sustainability factors. We will review this opinion annually.
Fair Analysis
The concept of fair analysis is derived from the Insurance Mediation Directive. It describes the extent of the choice of products and providers offered by an intermediary within a particular category of life assurance, mortgages, general insurance and/ or a specialist area. The number of contracts and providers considered must be sufficiently large to enable an intermediary to recommend a product that would be adequate to meet a client’s needs.
The number of providers that constitutes ‘sufficiently large’ will vary depending on the number of providers operating in the market for a particular product or service and their relative importance in and share of that market. The extent of fair analysis must be such that could be reasonably expected of a professional conducting business, taking into account the accessibility of information and product placement to intermediaries and the cost of the search.
In order to ensure that the number of contracts and providers is sufficiently large to constitute a fair analysis of the market, we will consider the following criteria:
- the needs of the customer,
- the size of the customer order,
- the number of providers in the market that deal with brokers,
- the market share of each of those providers,
- the number of relevant products available from each provider,
- the availability of information about the products,
- the quality of the product and service provided by the provider,
- cost, and
- any other relevant
Mortgages
Through the lenders or other undertakings with which we hold an agency, New Star Financial Management Ltd. can provide advice on and arrange mortgage products from the following range: fixed-rate loans, variable rate mortgages, capital & interest mortgages, interest only mortgages and residential investment mortgages.
New Star Financial Management Ltd. provides mortgage advice on a fair analysis basis (providing services on the basis of a sufficiently large number of contracts and product producers available on the market to enable the firm to make a recommendation, in accordance with professional criteria, regarding which contract would be adequate to meet your needs).
We will need to collect sufficient information from you before we can offer any advice on housing loans. This is due to the fact that a key issue in relation to mortgage advice is affordability. Such information should be produced promptly upon our request.
New Star Financial Management charge a fee for this service.
Switcher mortgage applications will not incur any fees payable to New Star Financial Management.
For an initial mortgage pre-enquiry which allows us to check with 8 available lenders a one-off fee of €150 (NO VAT) will be charged. Internet transfer is also available. All cheques/ drafts should be made payable to New Star Financial Management Ltd.
Acceptable payment methods are cash, bank draft or internet transfer.
For a full Mortgage Application submission we charge a fee of €350 (NO VAT) for non- city locations & the rest of Rural Ireland. This fee permits the customer to do a full formal application on two separate occasions (if required).
A fee of €500 (NO VAT) is charged for Dublin City/ Cork City /Galway City or immediate surrounding city areas. This fee permits the customer to do a full formal application on two separate occasions (if required).
A fee of €500 (NO VAT) is charged for ‘NON-RESIDENT’ mortgage applications. This fee permits the customer to do a full formal application on two separate occasions (if required).
We may receive commission based on 1% of your mortgage amount for arranging mortgage finance with the following lenders, HAVEN, DILOSK T/A ICS, FINANCE IRELAND, BOI, BROKERS IRELAND and AVANT MONEY. This commission is paid by the mortgage lender or Brokers Ireland and does not alter the fees payable above.
All cheques/drafts should be made payable to New Star Financial Management Ltd. We do not charge VAT on our fees. We do not yet offer payment by way of Debit or Credit Card.
The above fees are non-negotiable and non-refundable, except at the absolute discretion of New Star F.M. Ltd.
Disclosure of Information
Any failure to disclose material information may invalidate your claim and render your policy void.
If we receive commission from a product provider, this will be retained by us in the event of a mortgage application.
Regular Reviews
It is in your best interests that you review, on a regular basis, the products which we have arranged for you. As your circumstances change, your needs will change. You must advise us of those changes and request a review of the relevant policy so that we can ensure that you are provided with up to date advice and products best suited to your needs. Failure to contact us in relation to changes in your circumstances or failure to request a review, may result in you having insufficient insurance cover and/or inappropriate investments.
Conflicts of interest
It is the policy of our firm to avoid conflicts of interest in providing services to you. However, where an unavoidable conflict of interest arises we will advise you of this in writing before providing you with any service.
Default on payments by clients
Our firm will exercise its legal rights to receive payments due to it from clients (fees and insurance premiums) for services provided. In particular, without limitation of the generality of the foregoing, the firm will seek reimbursement for all payments made to insurers on behalf of clients where the firm has acted in good faith in renewing a policy of insurance for the client.
Product producers may withdraw benefits or cover in the event of default on payments due under policies of insurance or other products arranged for you. We would refer you to policy documents or product terms for the details of such provisions.
Mortgage lenders may seek early repayment of a loan and interest if you default on your repayments. Your home is at risk if you do not maintain your agreed repayments.
Complaints
We ask that you make any complaint against our firm, relating to services provided by us, in writing. We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 business days and we will fully investigate it. On completion of our investigation, we will provide you with a written report of the outcome. In the event that you are still dissatisfied with our handling of or response to your complaint, you are entitled to refer the matter to the Financial Services Ombudsman. A full copy of our complaints procedure is available on request.
Data Protection
New Star Financial Management Ltd complies with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 and the Irish Data Protection Act 2018. The data which you provide to us will be held on a computer database and paper files for the purpose of arranging transactions on your behalf. The data will be processed only in ways compatible with the purposes for which it was given and as outlined in our Privacy Notice which is given to all clients at the time of data collection, our privacy notice is also available on our website. You have the right at any time to request a copy of any ‘personal data’ within the meaning of the GDPR that our office holds about you and to have any inaccuracies in that information corrected. Please contact us at info@newstarfm.ie if you have any concerns about your personal data
We would also like to keep you informed of mortgage, insurance, investment and any other services provided by us or associated companies with which we have a formal business arrangement; which we think may be of interest to you. We would like to contact you by way of letter, email or telephone call. If you wish to receive such marketing information please tick the box in the Terms of Business acknowledgement letter.
We may receive referrals from such firms and may advise them of any transactions arranged for you.
Compensation Scheme
We are members of the Investor Compensation Scheme operated by the Investor Compensation Company Ltd. See below for details.
Investor Compensation Scheme
The Investor Compensation Act, 1998 provides for the establishment of a compensation scheme and the payment, in certain circumstances, of compensation to certain clients (known as eligible investors) of authorised investment firms, as defined in that Act.
The Investor Compensation Company Ltd. (ICCL) was established under the 1998 Act to operate such a compensation scheme and our firm is a member of this scheme.
Compensation may be payable where money or investment instruments owed or belonging to clients and held, administered or managed by the firm cannot be returned to those clients for the time being and where there is no reasonably foreseeable opportunity of the firm being able to do so.
A right to compensation will arise only:
- If the client is an eligible investor as defined in the Act; and
- If it transpires that the firm is not in a position to return client money or investment instruments owned or belonging to the clients of the firm; and
- To the extent that the client’s loss is recognised for the purposes of the
Where an entitlement to compensation is established, the compensation payable will be the lesser of:
- 90% of the amount of the client’s loss which is recognised for the purposes of the Investor Compensation Act, 1998; or
- Compensation of up to €20,000.
For further information, contact the Investor Compensation Company Ltd. at (01) 224 4955.
Sustainability Factors – Investment/IBIPS/Pension Advice
When providing advice, New Star Financial Management Ltd considers the adverse impact of investment decisions on sustainability. As part of our research and assessment of products, our firm will examine the Product Providers literature to compare financial products and to make informed investment decisions about ESG products. Our firm will at all times act in the client’s best interests and keep clients informed accordingly. The consideration of sustainability risks can impact on the returns of financial products.
Client acknowledgement
Terms of Business
I acknowledge that I have been provided with a copy of the Terms of Business of New Star Financial Management Ltd and confirm that I have read and understood them.
Direct Marketing
I confirm having read the paragraphs in relation to Data Protection in the Terms of Business and above, and consent to New Star Financial Management Ltd making contact with me by letter, phone, email, or SMS text in relation to the range of services provided by New Star Financial Management Ltd or its associated or partnership companies and to the sharing of relevant information as indicated.
If you wish to avail of these services, please tick here □
Client Signature: _______________________________
Date: _____________________________
Client Signature: _______________________________
Date: _____________________________
Financial Advisor Signature: _________________________________
Date: ______________________________
New Star Financial Management Limited
2nd Floor
Blackhall Street
Mullingar
Co. Westmeath, N91 V32W
Tel – 044 933 5443
Fax – 044 933 5443
Website – www.newstarfm.ie
