We’d ask you to check in with our compliance team before going ahead with any plans for Instagram stardom. They can talk you through the process and give you some guidance on mandatory compliant wording depending on the type of advertising you’re looking to do. But hey, as long as your adverts are compliant, knock yourself out!

Our compliance team will always aim to respond faster than liberally greased lightning. If they’re busy, it might only be lightly buttered lightning. To actually answer the question, they’ll aim to respond within 24 hours of receiving the request.

It’s a bit of a numbers game, we’re not going to lie. Within the first 12 months of authorisation, you’ll have to complete: 

• 10 mortgage files completed and signed off as fully compliant
• 3 protection or general insurance files completed and signed off as fully compliant
• A minimum of 35 CPD hours per rolling 12 months

You’ll also need an up-to-date annual product knowledge test on Competent Adviser.

Once you’ve done all that, you’ll be in for a one-to-one chat with our compliance manager who will review and discuss your progress. Phew!

It’s only the best for our advisers at Clever Advice! We use three market-leading systems designed to make your life easier: 

• Trigold for mortgages
• Assureweb for protection
• Uinsure for general insurance.

So, there are the answers to some of our frequently asked questions. We hope they did the trick. If you have a not-so-frequently asked question, though, please get in touch at info@cleveradvice.co.uk – we’re always on hand to help out.

Steady on! We know we’re pretty amazing but there’s a few things we have to wait for before you get started. You’ll not be able to start advising clients until your fit and proper checks have been completed and compliance have emailed you to confirm your full authorisation.

Our onboarding process is primarily handled by our mortgage club, SimplyBiz. Snazzy, right? They’ll carry out a fit and proper assessment, including assessing your application and all associated documentation, requesting your references and completing DBS and credit checks. Basically, all the fun stuff (not).

During this time, you’ll also have to complete your first product knowledge tests, Conduct Rules training and three internal induction training sessions with our compliance team. We promise to make it as painless as possible!

Another one of our favourite questions (well, we all like to have a little boast sometimes). At Clever Advice, we’re as supportive as a comfy armchair and as helpful as an umbrella in a rainstorm. Our compliance team is always on hand to answer any questions you have about compliance issues and to assist you when placing complex cases. Our super-organised admin team is here to assist you in completing compliant files and processing lender applications. And our accounts team is at the ready for any questions about that all-important commission. At Clever Advice, we have all angles covered.

Ah, one of our favourite questions. We all love a good commission. We receive weekly commission reports from our mortgage club, Legal & General. Once we’ve received a commission statement, our compliance team will carry out a full compliance check on your file to make sure there isn’t any remedial work lurking in the wings. Once everything’s been signed off as compliant, the accounts team will release your commission during the monthly commission run (usually the first week of every month). Everyone’s a winner!

If you don’t achieve CAS status within 12 months of being fully authorised, you’ll have to start from scratch the next year. Not ideal, but them’s the breaks. 

You’re looking at anywhere between six and 12 months, depending on your experience. It’s not an overnight thing but, as everyone’s mum once told them, patience is a virtue.