At Capital Investment Advisors we believe in putting our client's best interests first. We work to ensure our advisors act in the client's best interest for all investment options, not just a few.

Capital Investment Advisors along with most firms assume a fiduciary responsibility on wealth management (managed money) accounts. A fiduciary responsibility is a legal term referring to the highest level of care. Unfortunately, not all investment options are offered in managed money accounts therefore a fiduciary duty is not available on all investments. In these circumstances is when we separate ourselves from other firms. At Capital Investment Advisors, when you choose an investment that is not offered in a managed money account, we advise our representatives to elect a compensation option from the investment provider that includes a "trail."

Even though clients may not incur fees in investments, commissions are generally paid to the advisor as compensation. If all commissions are paid up front to an advisor at the time of an investment then there is little to no financial incentive for the advisor to monitor the account after the deposit. Furthermore, if the advisor isn't receiving a trail then the only way for them to be compensated moving forward is to move the assets to a different product to generate another commission.

We believe that when a client makes an investment, this is an important decision that should be the starting point of their relationship with an advisor and not the end. By our advisors selecting a compensation option with a trail, we are putting ourselves on the same side of the table as our client. When a client's portfolio does better, we do better. Isn't that the way investing should be?