Act now on mis-sold endowments: new article

dunstonh

copey wrote:

quote..The positive side of it is that the circumstances that have lead to some endowments failing have made us all richer so we cant have too many complaints. You are better than you would have been had the situation remained that allowed the endowment to pay a surplus.
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Not quite with you on that .. ..

Endowments were priced and set up to work in a boom/bust economy with high inflation. The move to a stable economy with low inflation has hit endowments but has made us all financially better off.

We have benefited from mortgages which are half the monthly cost (in some cases more) than they would have been. Property prices have sky rocketed and inflation isnt eating in to what we have saved/invested. You also have other indirect benefits as low unemployment.

So, had the old economy continued, you would have ended up with a £5-£20k surplus but you would have paid more in mortgage costs to get it and the net position would have made you worse off.

copey_2

Ok ,see where you are coming from,thanks for your comments.:o

Bratrush

I took an endowment mortgage out in May 1988, does this mean I can't get any compensation?

dunstonh

Bratrush wrote:

I took an endowment mortgage out in May 1988, does this mean I can't get any compensation?

29th April 1988 is the key date. It isnt the start date though but the date you signed the application.

Many banks and insurance companies have agreed to review pre 1988 cases but you wont find that stance from IFAs, accountants and solicitor/advisers.

Mr_Brillo

Hi dunstonh

Many thanks for very informative reply. NU have replied to an email sent last friday and tried to explain to me all the different bonuses etc, but they could be speaking in the same manner as "Borat", and it's complete industryspeil as far as I am concerned. I have emailed them back and asked for a bit of clarity for the completely thick (not that I am) then it might make some sense!! It's becoming obvious that this was a product that was far too complicated for the man in the street to understand with too many variables to give a reasonable degree of certainty that it would do what it said it would.

At least they have replied - Standard Life, who had a similar enquiry from me on the same day, sent back an email promising to reply within 3 days have yet to do so. I will have to look back through the reams of paperwork I have from them to find out when I was informed of the withdrawal of the promise. I guess that I should take the shares I got (585) into account here as well, or should I not?

Opinions??

janette_swain

Having tried to claim compensation for the mis-selling of an endowment since 2003 I would like to know if we are the only family who has been deemed ineligible for compensation!
The problem stems from the fact my husband and I took out a policy with an independent financial advisor in January 1988-the date of the first payment!
I know the FSA 'won't' look at policies prior to August 1988 BUT know for a fact friends who were in a similar situation to us have received compensation for an endowment, similar amount and with similar monthly payments, they took out in November 1987!! The difference being they signed up at a building society- Alliance and Leicester!!
The advisor and his insurance company are no more - the company closed down in 1991.
A letter to MP has revealed that IFAs did not 'sign up' to the agreement with FSA so there's no compensation for people like us!
Anyone any suggestions?
It is very annoying that we thought we were looking after our family and now find we will lose money because we spoke to an individual advisor rather than a building society!:

dunstonh

Anyone any suggestions?

Give up. It is end of the road.

You are correctly being rejected for pre-regulation and you have no alternative avenue to pursue.

keld

Hi,
Sorry if I repeat questions already asked, but I just want to know if I have done everything I can to get compensation for an endowment mortgage with an IFA who is no longer trading.

I took out the policy in 1995, for £40,000, (it's projected to return about £20,000). The company he sold out to say they didn't take his liabilities, the FSCS say that they can't look at it as he wasn't in default, ie he didn't go bankcrupt and now the FOS say that I wasn't mis-sold, because I was an intellegent educated woman in a good job. I was a first time buyer, I had no idea what to do and my dad said that I should get a repayment mortgage, but to go and see his IFA for the best deal.

I take it that I can't approach the endowment company, because it was sold through an IFA. Am I at the end of the line? I'm certainly at the end of my tether.

Thanks.

dunstonh

The FSCS is not an avenue for you so you can forget that.

The IFA has rejected the complaint so you have taken it to the FOS who have also rejected the complaint. You can appeal the decision of the FOS but its a slow process and most do not get overuled (but some do).

Just because you have an endowment, doesnt mean it has been mis-sold. If the documentation shows that the sale and recommendation was correct and information was disclosed then there is nothing you can do about it.

The best thing for you now is to get the endowment reviewed. A projection of a £20k shortfall doesnt mean you will get a shortfall. Projections are not reliable and many have projected a shortfall right up to 3 months before maturity and have then paid a surplus. Equally the flaws in projections can also overstate the position on really bad examples and the shortfall could end up bigger.

xtratime

Regarding the endowment promise, Standard Life still show an element of the endowment promise in their annual statements that they send out although i understand it has been reduced from what was originally promised.