Solicitor financial advisers will have access to two specialist software packages to help them meet regulatory requirements, it was announced last week.The result of negotiations undertaken by officials at Solicitors for Independent Financial Advice (SIFA) -- which has 120 law firm members -- with two software manufacturers will result in substantial discounts.The two packages are the Plum Fact Finder Plus Administrator and the Aequos Database from software firm The Research Department.The former is an application that collects information about individual clients, which has been modified to help lawyers comply with the Solicitors Investment Business Rules (SIBR).

The unmodified package caters for adherence to the Personal Investment Authority rules.

SIFA managing director Ian Muirhead explained that the bulk buying potential of SIFA had enabled it to persuade the software's designers to produce a tweaked version for solicitors.Under the SIBR, solicitors are not allowed to provide financial advice until they have asked many questions about the prospective client.

The Plum system, according to Mr Muirhead, includes questions the answers to which provide a database of client requirements.The system also incorporates data reporting and evaluation functions, has a diary system and keeps track of commissions.The Plum system runs on Windows 95 and the normal cost is £1500 but SIFA has negotiated a £200 discount for its members.The second package SIFA has recommended is the Aequos Database of financial product providers.

This application will also help solicitor financial advisers comply with regulations.

Under the compliance regime, following fact-finding comes an assessment of the suitability of pr oducts to the client.

The final regulation is a best advice requirement.

The solicitor financial adviser must recommend the product provider that will provide the best deal to the client.Aequos is a database of some 300 product providers in the UK, which are responsible for some 30,000 different products.

Advisers feed different criteria into the system and it whittles down the providers to the one with the most suitable product.Normally the package costs £20,000 per year, which is why, says Mr Muirhead, only the largest financial houses have been able to benefit from it.But SIFA has done a deal with the manufacturers under which some of the more esoteric providers of services are excluded -- reducing the number of providers on the version for solicitors to about 160.According to Mr Muirhead, SIFA members can get the package for an annual fee of just £2200.For further information, contact SIFA on 01372 721172.