"My adviser was my emotional lifeline."

Meet Sarah

Sarah has many strings to her bow. She’s had demanding and rewarding careers with the Welsh Ambulance Service and Thames Valley Police, been a road safety officer, and she’s now retired in her early fifties.  Her life might sound idyllic, especially if you’re wondering how much longer it will be before you can stop working.  

However, when Sarah shares the devastating challenges she overcame to reach this stage - financially secure, independent and loving every minute of retirement - you might reconsider.

“2020 was my annus horribilis,” Sarah says. “With no income, wrecked with grief, I was watching my money go down and down and I was starting to get panicky. It nearly finished me.

“I could not have got through it without Danni. Not only did she go above and beyond as my financial adviser, but she was also my emotional lifeline. She was invaluable.” 

"2020 was the worst year of my life."

In the space of a year, Sarah’s relationship broke down, and with Danni’s help, she bought out her ex’s share of their home. At the same time, her Mum was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Signed off work indefinitely for stress, Sarah moved back to the family home in 2019 to nurse her Mum through the final months. “Our family home was in trust for me,” she says. “The plan was that I would sell it and invest the money to provide my retirement income.” 
 
However, when the time came, it proved almost impossible to release the property, and therefore the money. “The trust company treated me like the enemy,” Sarah remembers. “I was the daughter, a trustee and the sole beneficiary, but I was treated like a stranger who was just after the money."

Sarah’s life, her career, her future plans and her financial security began to fall apart. “Danni went above and beyond,” she remembers. “We were having weekly updates. Between us, we sent over 130 emails to the trust company but received no response for three months. At one point, Danni rang the managing director herself. At my lowest ebb, I said Danni ‘I haven't got any more fight left in me’. She just stepped in.”

For Danni, supporting Sarah has been one of the most meaningful aspects of her career. “Sarah came to us during one of the most vulnerable and painful times in her life. What followed was a long, difficult period, made even harder by the lack of support from the trust company. The process became a battle—one we had to fight every step of the way."