AI recommended me, here’s how to use it in your financial planning

Last week I experienced a first, I was sat with a prospective client in an initial meeting, and was told that Claude, his chatbot of choice, had recommended that he get in touch with me. I’ve been recommended by friends, family members, colleagues, but never AI.

I’m relieved, frankly, that chatbots are pointing people who are looking for financial planning towards regulated advice. We know that the answers it gives out is firstly, unregulated, and secondly, mostly wrong. Financial technology firm Saturn tested 18 popular AI models against 121 different financial questions, putting more than 10,000 questions to the models altogether. In the models’ answers, Saturn found that calculations contained errors, risk warnings were missed, upcoming tax changes were ignored and non‑existent rules were hallucinated. Models such as ChatGPT and Claude gave out inaccurate financial advice 57% of the time, with the errors potentially costing tens of thousands of pounds; one mistake would have triggered a £17,500 loss. Some models gave incorrect advice 99% of the time in response to more complex personal finance questions.

The distinction between using AI as a tool and using it as a replacement for advice is really important. And I say this on the week after HSBC announced that it’s making 70% of its financial advisers and support staff in its wealth division redundant, as it turns increasingly to AI solutions.

Because it’s safe to say that Claude did not give the advice that I would have given to the prospective client in question. Because good financial planning requires more than access to information, it requires empathy, shared experience and an understanding of how people actually behave when money, uncertainty and major life decisions are involved.

That human element is something AI can’t replicate. And while I understand why financial firms are looking at ways AI can make advice more efficient, I’m disappointed that a whole chunk of HSBC’s clients may lose access to those human relationships. If we’re going to use AI in financial planning, I think it should be alongside good financial advice, rather than instead of it.

AI is here, and it can absolutely be a useful timesaver if you know how to use it safely. So we’ve been thinking about how we think AI should be used alongside regulated financial planning:

1) Of course, use AI to help you find the right adviser

Search engines and chatbots can help you identify planners who specialise in your needs, understand your life stage, or work in a style that suits you. But the moment you’re making decisions that affect your tax position, retirement, investments or long‑term security, you need someone regulated, accountable and trained to spot the nuances AI routinely misses.

2) Sense‑check concepts, not to act on recommendations

If you want a quick explainer on what a Lifetime ISA is, or how pension tax relief works, AI can give you a broad overview. But it cannot tell you whether you personally should contribute, withdraw, consolidate, invest or restructure. That requires regulated advice, suitability checks and an understanding of your goals, risk profile and capacity for loss.

3) Meeting preparation

AI can help you organise your questions, summarise your documents, or articulate what you’re trying to achieve. The more organised you come to an initial meeting, the better. But the real value comes from the conversation, the modelling, the analysis and the professional judgement that follows. You also need to make sure that you’re not sharing personal information and data with the chatbot.

The FCA has made it clear that AI tools must meet existing regulatory standards, including Consumer Duty, financial promotions rules and clear accountability under SM&CR. In other words, AI can support understanding, but it cannot replace regulated, personalised financial advice. The responsibility for safe use still sits firmly with authorised firms and qualified advisers.

Written by Nikki Zammit

Nikki Zammit, Director and Founder, specialises in tailored wealth management and planning and helps clients to realise and deliver their current and future needs. Get in contact if you’d like to talk about your planning needs via or 07725 986666.