Endowment Lives Assured - from 2 to 1 - reduction in premium?

mlallen

Thank you - thank you to all of you.

Wow- interesting!

So he has no financial interest but I'm still paying the life assurance?

And so there is no change to maturity value?

And so all we have been endeavoring to do over past 15yrs is merely get them to accept the Deed, they should still do this? What will happen if the original that we hold is lost and there is (dare say it) a life lost on the policy? Full proceeds would go to either Mr A or Miss B as per original policy when taken out in 1992?

And on maturity what happens if they still fail to accept the Deed? Proceeds would be split 50-50?

mlallen

Can anyone answer or advise on the queries above.

Many many thanks.

Presumably if I offer to take original Deed document in person to one of their offices this would sort this whole mess out?

magpiecottage

mlallen wrote: »

And so there is no change to maturity value?

No - it makes no difference.

And so all we have been endeavoring to do over past 15yrs is merely get them to accept the Deed, they should still do this?

You have misunderstood. The Deed records that Mr A and Miss B have given the policy to Miss B.

Yes, I know it sounds daft that Miss B is giving it to herself but that is usually the way it works. That is a transaction between yourselves. As soon as the Deed was executed, the ownership changed. The policy continued to cover both Mr A and Miss B but if either were to die Miss B (or her estate) would be entitled to all the proceeds. (Heads you win, tails he loses!).

Although the insurer is not a party to the change of ownership, it holds the money which the policy represents, though. If it is not told of the change then in the event of a claim (death, surrender or maturity) it would pay the proceeds to those it believed owned the policy - in the event of Miss B's death that would be Mr A.

So a notice is sent to the insurer, often with the deed, although insurers used to accept a letter from a solicitor instead. This would tell the insurer who the new owner was.

The insurer acknowledges receipt of the assignment. By doing so, they are saying "okay, we've seen this and our records now record who is entitled to any payout".

They do not need to do any more until such time as a claim comes in - then they must pay it to the current owner of the policy.

From what you say, it seems that they have received the deed, acknowledged receipt and sent it back to you for safekeeping.

If it is lost there are ways round the problem. I have a photocopy of a deed from another insurer plus a letter from a board member apologising for losing the original and confirming that the photocopy has the same validity as to original. The letter, which is nearly 17 years old actually forms an important part of the documentation because it is the proof that the copy of the deed is to be accepted when the policy matures next year.

Provided you have the assignment deed, I do not think you have anything to worry about but hang on to the letter acknowledging they are aware of it - just in case they accidentally pay out to the wrong person.

mlallen

magpiecottage wrote: »

From what you say, it seems that they have received the deed, acknowledged receipt and sent it back to you for safekeeping.

Thank you.

They did indeed receive a certified copy of the Deed in 1997 - hence the letter acknowledging this. They did not send this back to me - the original was sent to the Building Society which held it until we changed mortgage provider and sent it back to me. However, it is my view that Aviva (CU at the time) have lost the certified copy of the Deed. They still maintain that they do not have a certified copy which is why they are still requesting a copy. I'm worried that say the original Deed we have and acknowledgement letter is lost? There would be no legitimate documentation to confirm the Deed of Assignment ever took place. There is less than 5yrs left on the policy to mature so need to get this resolved, otherwise we will be reliant on the other party to do the honest thing - not something I'm comfortable with.

dunstonh

However, it is my view that Aviva (CU at the time) have lost the certified copy of the Deed.

Whenever I have done assignments, the insurer always returns them to be held by the policyholder with the policy document. Nowadays they would scan copies and hold them electronically. Back when this was done it would likely have been a paper copy which allows for the possibility of mis-filing.

They still maintain that they do not have a certified copy which is why they are still requesting a copy.

It may just be easier to give them a copy.

I'm worried that say the original Deed we have and acknowledgement letter is lost? There would be no legitimate documentation to confirm the Deed of Assignment ever took place. There is less than 5yrs left on the policy to mature so need to get this resolved, otherwise we will be reliant on the other party to do the honest thing - not something I'm comfortable with.

I'm not sure why this is being so difficult to get a resolution to. All it requires is written confirmation that it exists or you supplying them with a certified copy of the original you have.