Futuro Financial Services Pty Ltd has presented its prestigious True Advisor Award in 2015 to Andrew Fenton, a young financial adviser from Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, for challenging a leading industry superannuation fund on behalf of a bereaved client and his daughter over funds due after the death of his wife.

The industry fund wrote a cheque to the husband, but it had been the wife’s intent that her death benefit was paid to her daughter. The husband, who at the time was not Mr Fenton’s client, wanted that changed so that they could have security and remain in the family home during this traumatic time where he was only working part time. It was a drawn out process assisted by high-level specialist advice from a Melbourne legal firm.

Mr Fenton said: “It took 10 months to get the outcome that my client deserved. And the solution involved the use of an obscure vehicle called a superannuation proceeds trust that gave the best outcome. Really, it should not be that difficult for people, particularly in circumstances that he was confronted with. I felt that I needed to act because the outcome that my client would otherwise have been forced to accept would have indefinitely impacted on his quality of life.”

Futuro’s Executive Chairman Mr Dennis Bashford said: “Andrew set a fine example for us all. He delivered a level of support well beyond what anyone could be expected of him, and a significant part of that was that the fight was at no small cost to him.

“In recent years, advisers representing clients who didn’t have the knowledge, resources or capability to defend themselves against the big end of town have received Futuro’s top honour at the annual conference for our national dealer network.”

Source: Futuro Financial Services

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