Frequently Asked Questions
Dealing
Q. I want to buy/sell some shares - how do I go about this?
A. If you are already a client of Speirs & Jeffrey, simply telephone your usual contact on 0141 248 4311. If you are not yet a client please click here: "How do I become a Client".
Q. What do I do if someone calls me out of the blue offering shares in a company I've never heard of at a bargain price?
A. Hang up. On no account part with any cash. No reputable UK stockbroker is allowed to "cold call" you in this fashion and so it is highly likely that you are being targeted by a fraudster. If you are being troubled by this type of call consider moving your holdings into our nominee service so that your details will no longer appear on company share registers (from where many fraudsters can legitimately obtain information).
Q. What are trading hours?
A. The London Stock Exchange's dealing hours are from 8.00 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. daily. The Exchange is closed on public holidays in England & Wales. There will be someone at Speirs & Jeffrey to take your call each weekday from 8.00 a.m. until 6.00 p.m. but if you telephone to place an order after 4.30 p.m. we will not normally be able to deal for you until the following day.
Q. What days are exchanges closed?
The London Stock Exchange is closed on Public Holidays in England & Wales. See http://www.londonstockexchange.com/en-gb/about/cooverview/businessdays for details. Overseas exchanges may be closed on different days.
Q. Can I deal online?
A. Speirs & Jeffrey does not offer an online dealing facility and has no imminent plans to do so. We prefer to offer a personal service and hope to add value by way of our advice and experience.
Q. Can I give you instructions by email?
Yes, we can accept your instructions by email although you should be aware that email is an insecure medium of communication and that it may be unreliable. On occasion, email routing can lead to time delays between messages being sent and received. Phone calls and faxes remain the most transparent way to instruct. If we have any reason to suspect that an email instruction purporting to come from you may not be genuine then we will not act on it until we have the opportunity to confirm it with you by telephone or fax. Any email instruction will be quickly acknowledged, so if you do not hear back from us, please follow up by telephone.
Q. Can I fax back a transfer?
A. No, unfortunately, we are not able to accept a facsimile signature on a CREST transfer form.
Q. Can I pay by Switch/Visa/Delta?
No, we do not offer these facilities. We can accept cheques and electronic transfers.
Q. Can I still sign a transfer in my maiden name because the certificate has never been changed? Can I have the cheque in my married name?
A. The answer to the first question is yes. The answer to the second question is also yes - although we will need sight of your marriage certificate in order to effect this.
Q. How do I transfer money to you electronically?
A. Please contact your adviser for the relevant bank details. On making the transfer, please ask your bank to add your Speirs & Jeffrey client code to the payment as a reference. This will allow us to identify the incoming cash and apply it to your account. If you do not know your Speirs & Jeffrey client code, your adviser will inform you.
Q. Who do I make cheques payable to?
A. Speirs & Jeffrey Ltd.
Q. Do I need my certificate to sell my shares?
A. If the holding is supported by a valid paper share certificate (as opposed to electronic custody) then we cannot complete a deal on your behalf unless a valid certificate is available. We strongly recommend that you check to ensure that you do have your certificate before instructing a sale as otherwise the sale may have to be unwound at your expense.
Q. What if I don't have my share certificate?
If you are absolutely certain that your certificate is lost it is possible to obtain a duplicate from the company's registrars. This process, however, is both costly and time-consuming. For this reason we strongly recommend that clients keep their share certificates in a safe place or, better still, use our nominee service.
Q. I have foreign shares, held outwith a Speirs &Jeffrey nominee account - how can I sell these?
A. Such shares may be represented by a physical certificate or they may be registered electronically and represented by a shareholder account statement. In a number of countries (e.g. Australia) physical share certificates no longer exist, with holdings simply being recorded on an electronic register. In such cases, the holding will be represented by a shareholder statement. Regardless, we would require transfer of these shares into our nominee service before being able to sell such shares. In order to make the transfer into our nominee, we would require the certificate or shareholder statement. Please contact your Speirs & Jeffrey adviser for further guidance.
Q. What are your commission rates?
A. Here is a link to a sheet detailing our standard charges and commission rates.
Q. What are Bid and Offer Prices?
A. The bid price is the price at which the market will buy shares and the offer price is the level at which the market will sell shares. The offer price will always be higher than the bid and the difference between the two prices is known as the "spread". The spread tends to be quite narrow (expressed as a percentage of the middle price) for larger stocks but wider for smaller companies.
Q. What is Crest?
A. Crest is the multi-currency electronic settlement system for UK and Irish securities. It allows participants to settle trades with each other quickly, accurately and efficiently.
Q. What is Stamp Duty?
A. Stamp Duty is a tax levied by the UK Government on the purchase of all UK shares. The current rate is 0.5% of the value of the transaction. Stamp Duty is not levied on sales of shares. Certain investors are exempt.
Q. What is the PTM levy?
A. The PTM levy is charged on all equity transactions with a value of more than £10,000. It is used to fund the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers. The levy is £1 per trade.
Q. Why does it take longer for a unit trust or OEIC deal to settle than for an ordinary share transaction?
A. There are several reasons:
1. Most deals of this type are struck on a forward pricing basis and there is, therefore, a delay until the next valuation point. Unit trust managers will generally value their funds once a day, but in some cases this could be once a week, a month or even more infrequently than that.
2. The fund managers generally offer longer settlement periods than the London Stock Exchange.
3. There is a further delay for holdings outwith our nominee, as the fund manager often requires some documentation to confirm the validity of the instruction.
Q. How can I transfer shares to my wife/children and how much does it cost?
A. Shares held in paper certificates may be transferred by completing a share transfer form (copies of which we can supply). No such form is required for shares held in our nominee. In the case of transfers between spouses, no stamp duty is payable, as long as a carefully worded gift letter has been signed by the transferor. In all other cases, stamp duty at the rate of 0.5% of the value of the transfer is payable. Speirs & Jeffrey also has administration fees relating to these transfers. These are listed on our Charges and Commissions sheet.
Q. Why can't I set limits if I'm not in the nominee or have cash in my account?
A. There are two reasons:-
1. Under MiFID rules, all orders must be visible to the market. For UK stocks these are placed on the London Stock Exchange Order Book Trading System, which requires trades to be settled within three business days of the trade date.
2. If we deal on your behalf in the event of a limit being triggered we must be certain of being in a position to complete the transaction on time. This means that we need to be sure that we can deliver your stock (for sales) or have your cash consideration available (for purchases). If we are unable to make timely settlement, we can be fined by the Stock Exchange.
Q. I don't have a share portfolio but have read that shares in Company X are very cheap. I'm thinking of buying lots of them. What do you advise?
A. Investing in shares is a fascinating and potentially profitable activity. Investing in a single company, however, is risky and we strongly recommend that you do not put all your investment eggs in one basket. Newspaper, magazine and online share recommendations can be useful sources of ideas but you should remember that many other investors will also have seen and possibly acted on these ideas. We recommend that you take your time and do as much research as possible before finalising your investment decisions. If you become a client of Speirs & Jeffrey our advisers will help guide you and give you access to our own research and information.