PHEW! Shareholders were treated to a rollercoaster ride last week as a worldwide share slump was triggered by tax issues in China.

It was then spread and fuelled by gloom over the US economy and fears that shares were getting too pricey.

Brokers were quick to trot out the old adages that it was a "correction", not a collapse (see panel).

But novice investors, especially those with lots of money tied up in SSIAs, are not so sanguine about seeing hundreds if not thousands wiped off their shareholdings.

So what can and should they do if they are uncomfortable with the risk rollercoaster that stock market investment inevitably involves?

We asked some independent advisers what they would say to jittery clients.

Most would advise them to hold their nerve and stick it out - or even buy more shares!

But if investors can't stand the heat, they can always get out of the kitchen and into a low-risk haven such as guaranteed funds that secure 100% of your capital - at a price.

Liam Ferguson, Ferguson & Associates Ferguson doesn't see the recent 'correction' as a reason to run for the cover of safe but unexciting investments. It was "an inevitable correction in markets that had been rising almost incessantly for a number of years. Even after the recent dip, anyone who invested as recently as 12 months ago is still sitting on a profit", he says.

Jumpy SSIA investors can switch to a cash fund in their own provider's stable, advises Ferguson. And it might " be a good idea to avoid the April rush". However, check that a penalty for doing this hasn't already been imposed, as this would make this option unattractive.

For investors who still insist on a capital guarantee, Ferguson recommends Eagle Star's Protected Funds and Irish Life's Protected Consensus Fund.

"The risk is limited because they have a protected price below which the unit price of the fund cannot fall. This is 80% of the highest-ever unit price of that fund, which is more flexible than many guaranteed funds, as the protected price applies every day, unlike some capital guarantees which apply only on a particular day".

However, he stresses that investors shouldn't get too excited about the real value of a 100% guarantee.

"Getting just your money back after six years represents a loss in real terms when you take account of inflation, " he notes.

Michael Kiernan, myadviser. ie Kiernan is "always very slow to recommend guaranteed plans", he says.

"In a downturn the best advice is to ride it out. If you get out now then you will have realised your losses and will be guaranteed to miss the upturn. The costs associated with guarantees and the likelihood of them coming into play is not in my opinion worth it. I have not been able to find a five-year period where a well-diversified portfolio of equities and property has not delivered a positive return, so why pay for a capital guarantee?"

Kiernan urges SSIA investors not only to keep their nerve but to invest their nest egg in equities despite the recent upheaval. He recommends New Ireland's Smart Fund range, which have no upfront or exit charges - so 100% of your money is invested - and a low 0.75% annual management charge.

He also likes Quinn Life's low-cost funds, which also put away all of your cash and have a fairly low annual management charge of 1%.

"That way they experience the upturn and can get out whenever they want. The key is not to get out of the market because you will lock in the recent loss, " Kiernan adds.

John Geraghty, LABrokers. ie Geraghty says that when faced with market volatility in the early stages of SSIAs, "most (of his clients) rode out the storm. They stayed put and the markets picked up very well for them, exceeding the returns they would have obtained elsewhere. Many of these equity-based SSIA savers have experienced how markets can swing."

He says those who stay invested have a chance to regain last week's losses. If they switch into a cash fund now, they could miss out on any upswing.

"However, if they have earmarked the proceeds for a definite requirement then switching into cash now would give them certainty as to what their SSIA will be worth."

Nervy investors who insist on investing in shares with a 100% guarantee should look at Canada Life's guaranteed fund, Geraghty advises.

Providence Finance Services John Lowe of Providence warns that there is always a built-in price to pay for any guarantee, which will eat into potential returns.

"Very few actual guaranteed funds achieve the returns of the non-guaranteed funds. Therefore I would be personally tempted to do a mix and match (of diverse investment assets), especially as I believe the recent market turbulence was a glitch. . .

you'll hardly know it was there in a few weeks' time."

For investors who won't sleep unless their money is 100% safe, however, Providence recommends New Ireland's Guaranteed Evergreen Fund, Eagle Star's Protected Funds, Irish Life's Protected Consensus Fund, Liberty Asset Management's Flagship Fund, and Canada Life's Active Guaranteed Fund "These funds all work on the basis of providing a capital guarantee at the end of a specific term, usually six years, while at the same time offering active fund management, unlike a tracker bond which, as you know, tracks a stock market index, " says Justin O'Gorman QFA, head of life and pensions at Providence.

Significantly, none of the advisers we spoke to recommends tracker bonds.