Financial information, guidance, targeted support and personal advice offer different levels of help. The main differences are how much the provider considers your individual circumstances, whether a personal recommendation is made and which regulatory duties apply.
Quick answer
Guidance explains options without telling you what is personally suitable. Targeted support, available from authorised firms since 6 April 2026, makes suggestions for groups of consumers with common characteristics. Personal advice involves a recommendation based on a fuller assessment of your circumstances.
Key points
- Information and guidance can be useful starting points and are often free.
- Targeted support is a regulated service that firms need permission to provide.
- Targeted support is designed around common characteristics rather than a complete personal assessment.
- Personal advice can recommend a course of action based on individual circumstances.
- The provider should identify which service is being offered.
- Consumer protection depends on the activity, firm and facts—not only the label.
General financial information
General information explains concepts, products, risks or processes without assessing whether a particular choice is suitable for an individual. Examples include educational articles, product brochures and explanations of pension terminology.
Information can be valuable because it helps consumers ask better questions. It is not a substitute for personal advice where the answer depends on detailed circumstances.
A website that explains drawdown and annuities may describe advantages and disadvantages, but it cannot know which option is suitable for a reader without a proper assessment.
Financial guidance
Guidance helps a person understand options and decide what to investigate. MoneyHelper and Pension Wise are well-known government-backed guidance services.
A guidance session may consider the question the person brings and explain relevant factors. It does not normally recommend a specific regulated product as personally suitable.
Guidance can be enough when the consumer needs clarity rather than a recommendation. It can also help prepare for an adviser meeting and reduce the amount of paid time needed.
Consumers should not dismiss guidance as “less useful” than advice. For straightforward decisions, impartial guidance may be the most proportionate form of help.
Targeted support
Targeted support became available from 6 April 2026. Firms must have the appropriate permission to provide it.
The service allows a firm to make suggestions intended for a group of consumers who share common characteristics. For example, a provider might identify customers with patterns suggesting they are not saving enough for retirement and offer a suitable action for that group.
The suggestion is not based on the same full, in-depth assessment used for comprehensive personal advice. The firm must nevertheless design and deliver the service under the targeted-support rules and Consumer Duty.
Targeted support may be delivered by a bank, pension provider, investment platform, wealth manager or another authorised firm. Availability depends on the provider.
Consumers should understand the characteristics used, the limits of the assessment and whether important personal facts have not been considered.
Personal financial advice
Personal advice considers information about the individual and makes a recommendation. The adviser may gather details about objectives, finances, risk tolerance, capacity for loss, knowledge and experience.
The recommendation should explain why it is suitable within the agreed scope. The adviser may also identify alternatives, costs and risks.
Advice is usually paid for through a fixed, hourly, percentage or combined fee. The client should know the charge before committing.
Personal advice is more comprehensive but still has limits. An adviser cannot guarantee returns, and the service may cover only specified issues.
Advice, guidance and targeted support compared
| Type of help | Typical basis | Personal recommendation? | Common use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information | General facts and education | No | Learning terminology and processes |
| Guidance | Explains options and considerations | Normally no | Understanding choices and next steps |
| Targeted support | Common characteristics of a consumer group | A targeted suggestion, not full individual advice | Helping groups take a useful action |
| Personal advice | Individual circumstances and objectives | Yes | Complex or consequential decisions |
The terms used by providers may vary, so ask what regulatory service is actually being delivered.
Regulation and consumer protection
Targeted support and regulated personal advice require appropriate FCA permissions. Guidance can be provided in different settings and may sit inside or outside regulated activity, depending on what is said and done.
FOS and FSCS protection cannot be assumed solely from the word “guidance” or “support”. Coverage depends on the firm, service and complaint.
Keep the provider’s terms, records of the interaction and any recommendation or suggestion. These help establish which service was delivered.
Choosing the right type of help
Begin with information and guidance when you are learning about a subject. Move towards personal advice when several areas interact, the consequences are significant or you need a recommendation.
Targeted support may be useful when it is offered by a provider you already use and the identified consumer group resembles your position. Check what the provider has not considered.
Do not pay for comprehensive advice automatically. A focused question may be answered through free guidance or one-off advice.
Equally, do not rely on general guidance for a decision involving guarantees, complex pensions or substantial risk when personal circumstances are central.
Questions to ask the provider
- Is this information, guidance, targeted support or personal advice?
- What information about me has been considered?
- Is the suggestion designed for a group or specifically for me?
- What important circumstances have not been assessed?
- Does the firm have FCA permission for this service?
- What does the service cost?
- What complaint and protection routes may apply?
Frequently asked questions
Is targeted support free?
Providers choose their commercial model. Ask whether there is a direct charge or whether the service is included elsewhere.
Can targeted support recommend a product?
It can make suggestions within the targeted-support framework, but it is not based on the same full individual assessment as comprehensive advice.
Is guidance regulated?
Some guidance is provided by regulated firms, but whether the interaction is a regulated activity depends on its content and context.
Can guidance tell me what to do?
Guidance can explain options and consequences but normally does not make a personal regulated recommendation.
Which service has the strongest personal assessment?
Comprehensive personal advice generally involves the fullest assessment of individual circumstances.
Can I complain about targeted support?
Potentially, depending on the firm, service and issue. Use the provider’s complaint process and check eligibility for FOS if unresolved.
Examples of where the boundary matters
A pension provider explaining the general features of drawdown is giving information. A Pension Wise appointment can provide guidance about available pension options. A provider identifying a group of customers with similar under-saving patterns may provide targeted support if authorised. An adviser recommending a particular retirement arrangement after examining the client’s full position is providing personal advice.
The language used is not decisive on its own. What matters is the substance of the interaction, the information considered and the nature of the recommendation or suggestion.
Record keeping for consumers
Save the provider’s terms and any written output. Record whether the provider described the interaction as guidance, targeted support or advice. This can matter if the consumer later believes the service was misleading or unsuitable.
How personalisation differs in practice
Information may be identical for every reader. Guidance can be interactive and may discuss the consumer’s question, but usually avoids selecting a personal product or strategy. Targeted support uses defined characteristics shared by a group. Personal advice analyses the individual in substantially greater depth.
The amount of data collected is therefore not the only test. A digital service can collect information without providing advice, while an adviser can provide personal advice through a relatively short meeting if sufficient reliable information is already available.
Ask what information has been used and what has been excluded. A provider may know the products held on its own platform but have no knowledge of debts, other pensions, tax position or household commitments.
Examples of targeted-support limitations
A pension provider might identify customers in a particular age range who are contributing below a defined level and suggest increasing contributions. That suggestion may be useful, but it may not consider high-interest debt, affordability, other pensions or near-term spending needs.
An investment platform might identify customers holding unusually large cash balances and suggest investing part of the money. The service may not know that the cash is reserved for a house purchase or tax bill.
These examples do not make targeted support unsuitable. They show why the consumer should understand the group characteristics and the limits of the provider’s information.
Costs and commercial incentives
Guidance from public bodies is generally free to the user. Provider guidance or targeted support may also appear free, but the provider may benefit if the consumer contributes more, invests or uses another service.
A commercial incentive does not automatically make the support poor. It should, however, be understood. Ask whether the provider receives product charges and whether alternative providers are considered.
Personal advice normally has an explicit adviser charge, although payment can be deducted from a product. Compare the cost with the scope and responsibility of the service.
When to move from guidance to advice
Consider personal advice when a choice is irreversible, valuable guarantees may be lost, tax and several financial areas interact, or a recommendation must reflect detailed personal circumstances.
Guidance may remain appropriate when the consumer only needs to understand terminology, narrow a list of options or prepare for a later decision.
The transition is not a failure of guidance. Good guidance should help people recognise when the question has become too personal or complex for a general answer.
Common mistakes
A common mistake is treating a provider’s educational content as a recommendation. Another is assuming that a personalised-looking online message has considered the whole financial position.
Consumers may also pay for advice when they only need factual guidance, or avoid advice because a guidance session felt comprehensive even though no suitability assessment occurred.
Read the service description and ask directly whether the output is a personal recommendation.
Scenario comparison
Choosing how to access a pension
An article explaining drawdown and annuities is information. A Pension Wise appointment is guidance. A pension provider might offer targeted support to a group at risk of unsustainable withdrawals. A regulated adviser can recommend an income strategy after assessing the individual’s pensions, spending, tax, dependants and risk capacity.
Starting an investment
A platform tutorial can explain diversification. Targeted support might suggest a diversified fund to customers holding excess cash who match defined characteristics. Advice would assess whether investing is appropriate for that person at all and, if so, recommend a suitable arrangement.
Increasing pension contributions
General guidance can explain tax relief and contribution limits. Targeted support can prompt a relevant group to consider a higher contribution. Personal advice considers affordability, debts, employer matching, retirement goals and other priorities.
How providers should communicate boundaries
The description should be prominent enough for consumers to understand before acting. Technical terms hidden in conditions do not correct a misleading impression created by the main message.
Providers should avoid language suggesting a complete personal assessment where only limited data or group characteristics were used. Consumers should be told when a significant fact has not been considered.
Can a consumer use more than one type of help?
Yes. A person might begin with MoneyHelper guidance, receive targeted support from a pension provider and later obtain one-off regulated advice. These services can complement each other if their roles remain clear.
Bring records of earlier guidance or support to an adviser, but understand that the adviser must reach an independent conclusion based on the agreed scope.
How to judge whether support was useful
Useful support should improve understanding, identify relevant action or show when further help is needed. It should not leave the consumer falsely believing that all personal risks have been assessed.
Judge the service against its stated purpose. Guidance should not be criticised merely because it did not provide advice, but advice should not be defended as guidance if a personal recommendation was actually made.
Sources and further reading
Important: This guide provides general educational information. It is not personal financial or legal advice and does not determine whether a complaint or compensation claim will succeed.
Reviewed by: Financial Adviser Hub Editorial Team. Last reviewed: June 2026.