Existing business ranks highest in importance
Advisers ranked Existing business first in importance, followed by New business and Online facilities.
Defaqto undertakes an annual satisfaction survey among financial advisers to establish the service levels of providers of wealth and protection products. This paper sets out the results for the bonds market in 2026.
The findings are based on adviser feedback and form the basis of the Defaqto Service Ratings awarded from 1 February 2026, providing a structured, adviser-led benchmark of service standards across bonds providers.
Satisfaction levels range from 70% to 78% across disciplines
New business achieved the highest satisfaction level at 78%, while Administration staff and Technical assistance recorded 70%.
Performance varies across operational disciplines
Highest scoring providers differ across administration, new business, online facilities, reporting and technical support when results are weighted by adviser-ranked importance.
Quilter (UK) ranked first overall for bonds service in 2026
Based on total above average scores weighted by the importance attributed to each service discipline.
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The analysis assessed performance across six key bonds service disciplines, combining satisfaction scoring with adviser-ranked importance to determine overall Service Ratings.
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Advisers were asked to nominate providers they had placed business with in the previous 12 months and to rank them in order of preference where more than one provider was selected.
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Satisfaction was scored using a 1 to 5 scale, where 5 represents very satisfied and 1 represents very dissatisfied.
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Defaqto calculates a satisfaction index for each provider by assessing the proportion of above average scores and weighting the result according to the importance advisers assign to each discipline. The Service Rating is based on these indexes, with 70% of the average importance ordinarily being the Gold benchmark.
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When weighted by importance, highest scoring providers differ by discipline. Quilter (UK) achieved the highest weighted score for Administration staff and Existing business, while HSBC Life (UK) ranked highest for New business and Transact (UK) led in Reporting.
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Based on total above average scores across all service disciplines, Quilter (UK) ranked first overall for bonds service in 2026, followed by Transact (UK) and HSBC Life (UK).
Read the full report