Do a lot of life assurance companies do this?

morrisoscar

I have an endowment with Scottish Friendly which matures in January which is due to pay over 50k and I intend to pay our mortgage off . As I had not had any contact from them by 14 Dec I rang them to be told all the information I needed had been posted to me on the 3 Dec. As the letter had not arrived I asked them to send it out again which they did on 16 Dec. I returned the information they had asked for the same day (including the original documents).

Rang them yesterday and asked if they had received the documents to be told they do not log incoming mail so could not tell me if they had them or not, but would write to me the week before maturity if they did not receive the information by then. They also told me that they only make payments by cheque and it would normally be sent as soon as possible after the maturity date. This all seems a bit amateurish to me or a deliberate policy to hang on to the money for as long as possible and I was wondering if a lot of companies work like this.

dunstonh

What bit are you not happy with?

Issuing proceeds by cheque is not uncommon on legacy plans from small or closed insurers. Having all documents go to a scanning dept and then put on the system under a workflow type basis is very common. Waiting until the policy has matured is correct because they wont know the value until it matures. Some old fashioned conventional with profits plans used to be able to pay out early but most plans have a daily value and cannot be paid out until they mature.

morrisoscar

dunstonh wrote: »

What bit are you not happy with?

.

Thanks dunstonh,

I'm just concerned that as their first correspondence has never arrived the same may happen to the cheque and am wondering why they can't just do a BACS transfer into the account I have been paying the premium from for the past 25 years. I am also slightly concerned that they can not tell me if they have received my documents a week after I sent them.

lisyloo

As it's relatively important stuff, have you considered sending it recorded delivery (about 70p).
That way you can chcek on-line whether it's been received before they can tell you.

morrisoscar

lisyloo wrote: »

As it's relatively important stuff, have you considered sending it recorded delivery (about 70p).
That way you can chcek on-line whether it's been received before they can tell you.

I think the answer is yes in hindsight, however I just used the forms and business reply envelope they enclosed in the correspondence that did arrive.

morrisoscar

Rang Scottish Friendly today to ask if they had received my documents. Got the "we do not log mail so can't tell you answer". When I pointed out that the policy matures next week the person I spoke to said there was nothing on the screen to suggest the documents had been received filled in incorrectly, apparently this is the only time their system would show receipt of the documents.
There representative suggested that I ring them two weeks after maturity if I had not received a cheque. The sum involved is quite considerable and I am, possibly incorrectly, a little concerned at what appears to me to be a sum what amateurish system for dealing with maturing policies.
Should I just relax or am I right to be concerned especially in light of the problems people are having with late payment from other companies.

morrisoscar

My endowment matured last Friday. Received a chargeable event notice on Monday, rang Scottish Friendly on Tuesday to ask them when I could expect the cheque. I was told the cheque had been raised the day before and posted first class. Today being Thursday and no cheque having arrived I rang again to be told the policy had been processed but that no cheque had been raised yet according to their screen:mad: . The person I spoke to said it was strange that the cheque hadn't been raised but it could be because it is for a substantial amount (over £50k). Asked me to ring them at the end of next week if the cheque hadn't arrived by then.

Is it me being an old cynic or are Scottish Friendly playing games and holding on to money as long as they can? Any ideas on how to move things along would be gratefully received.

silvercar

So on monday they say a cheque has been raised and n thursday it hasn't. No wonder you are annoyed. Ask to speak to someone senior. If that doesn't work ask for details of their complaints procedure.

They may not know the exact amount due until the date of maturity, but they have had 20 years notice of the maturity date!

morrisoscar

silvercar wrote: »

So on monday they say a cheque has been raised and n thursday it hasn't. No wonder you are annoyed.

Yes, I have no idea how many people have endowments maturing with them each week or the weekly value, but, if the money involved is substantial then delays deliberate or otherwise could be quite profitable for them.

morrisoscar

silvercar wrote: »

So on monday they say a cheque has been raised and n thursday it hasn't. No wonder you are annoyed. Ask to speak to someone senior. If that doesn't work ask for details of their complaints procedure.

Rang again today, couldn't get passed the first person I spoke to. She couldn't tell me anymore than the screen shows that no cheque has been issued. Apparently the customer service department don't take calls.:rolleyes: Asked about making a complaint regarding the contradictory information I have been given regarding the issuing then the non issuing of the cheque. Pointed out that each day that goes by costs me money as I cant pay off my mortgage until the cheque arrives. Somebody will ring me back next week.:mad: Seems I'm no closer to an answer or my money.

Just looked at their web site for customer service satisfaction. They are pleased that 66% of customers are satisfied with the time taken to pay at policy maturity or put another way 1 in 3 are unhappy.

Newly_retired

I should make a complaint if I were you. We had problems getting ours paid out but things moved fast once we went into complaints procedure.