Those in their seventies are most likely to have sought advice, with almost two in five (37%) having done so compared to just 18% of those in their twenties.
Karen Barrett, chief executive of unbiased.co.uk, said: “RDR now enters its second year, after what has been a strong year for the professional advice industry.
“One of the biggest effects for consumers is increased transparency over charges and how advice is paid for, and we believe this has led to consumers spending more time evaluating their financial advice options.
“Our research has shown the unadvised nation is triggered by approaching retirement to seek advice; however it’s the advised nation that is reaping the benefits of a lifetime of advice, from mortgage advice all the way through to their long term care plans.”
Unbiased.co.uk’s adviser research also found that consumers follow a pattern or an advice life cycle when engaging with advice.
Those who take advice tend to follow a pattern throughout their life, with mortgages often the first reason to seek advice, followed by protection (such as life cover, critical illness or payment protection) and pensions.
When it comes to life events that trigger people to engage with advice, approaching retirement tops the list, with 83% of advisers seeing this as the top trigger, followed by receiving an inheritance (68%) and buying a first property (65%).
A third (32%) of those who have sought advice believe it helped them make sense of complex financial products, a quarter (25%) say it gave them confidence that they had made the right decisions and for 23% it saved them time.
Almost one in five (17%) said that seeking advice from a professional financial adviser had saved them money.
With charges for professional financial advice now clearer for consumers to understand, the research reveals of those who have sought advice, one in five (21%) paid for the advice out of a percentage of the sum invested, 19% paid a project fee, 8% a retainer fee and 7% paid an hourly rate.
