Personal pension charges?

dunstonh

They didnt ask for anything - they were sold it

They may have been sold it but they obviously went into the branch and sat through the process and agreed to buy it. The very first post the OP said they thought they had a 5 year guaranteed product and that is what they wanted. So, they had what they thought. However, they thought they had been sold something different without a guarantee.

Would that really happen? dont want to be seen as picking holes but perhaps you should have clarified why as an FSA authorised adviser , you were advising Judith to complain .

Yes it would happen. Indeed, it could trigger an investigation in to his other pensions sold to see if there is a trend if this is not the first complaint.
And yes you are picking holes and being inconsistent. You regularly criticise bank sales forces (as do I). However, you are happy to let the person get away with such a blatant mis-sale because there is nothing for Judith to gain from it.

whiteflag_3

dunstonh wrote: »

And yes you are picking holes and being inconsistent. You regularly criticise bank sales forces (as do I). However, you are happy to let the person get away with such a blatant mis-sale because there is nothing for Judith to gain from it.

Dont think thats the case, kindly show the post where I have said Judith shouldnt complain- I think I said I 100% agreed with her.

Here

100% agree , thats why isnt it vitalily important that people reading these can clearly understand when and how to complain. On reading the two threads the issues look exactly the same to me - ("tied" branch based salesman, poor sales practice, vital information not being mentioning, documentation not issued) yet unless i'm mistaken the industry expert on these boards is giving completely opposite advice.

Its what you posted that seemed to be at odds with what you had posted previously, therefore for the benefit of other readers I merely asked you to clarify the difference between the two.

TH1878

dunstonh wrote: »

The £600 is not paid explicitly. That is what AXA pay barclays. However, the annual management charges factor that charge into the product. Depending on the product version, you can have that taken in different ways.

Are you sure on this Dunstonh? We did a few personal pensions (D-SIPP) with Axa last year and the 0.7% is the product AMC; the advice fee that we agreed with the client was either taken from the plan immediately (which is what we did) or could be spread over 2,3,4 or 5 years.

It sounds like Barclays are going to receive £600 split over 2 years, i.e £25 per month.

TH1878

judith_sw wrote: »

Just a little update on the weekend's saga...

I spoke to AXA this morning who confirmed that the £600 would indeed be paid by me, through 24 monthly payments if £25. I have decided to cancel the plan, as it doesn't seem the best option for a potential 3 year investment term - 8.3% of my contributions plus the usual charges are too much as far as I am concerned. I will be refunded in full.

Barclays were very understanding but insisted that no rules seemed to have been contravened. The manager I spoke to did, however acknowledge that I should have been informed about the £600 fee, although I'm not sure whether this is necessary under current FSA guidelines. He also pointed out that I should have received some "terms and conditions" documents at the time of signing - I did not.

I'm much happier now, but feel that this sort of problem could so easily have been avoided by greater transparency during the application process. Mine is only one incidence, and I'm sure the overwhelming majority go smoothly. Nevertheless, it made for a worried weekend and I wasted quite a bit of time today when I was already busy.

Moral of the story? I'm not sure there is one, but read all the small print carefully, and don't blindly trust a bank you've been with for 23 years.

Sorry - just read this. Ties in with my previous post

atw_uss

Update ... somewhat overdue!

I've just started using MSE forums again, this time with regard to a potential house purchase. This reminded me of the excellent advice I got from this site re. the pension mis-selling. I thought an update appropriate:

I did in fact complain to Barclays Wealth about the pension. This was investigated in house and the complaint was not upheld. The adjudicator sent me copies of documents that should have indicated that I had been warned of risks and charges. This came as something of a surprise to me, as I had never seen these documents, and if I had, I would never have agreed to anything. I hit the proverbial roof and referred it on to the Ombusdman. I stated from the outset that I did not incur any financial loss but was angry and worried at the apparent incompetence of the whole episode. A year passed and the Ombudsman found in my favour, arguing the "balance of probabilities" option, i.e. why on earth would anyone ever recommend a personal pension for someone in my circumstances. To them it was clear cut! I also got a cheque for £100 from Barclays as compensation - I never asked for this but it was a nice finishing touch. The real satisfaction is that I was believed and hopefully this will prevent some other person being subjected to the same dodgy advice!

So, moral of the story, sometimes the little people do win and the big banks admit the error of their ways. Shame I had to be so persistent though.