Endowment -> Ombudsman rejection -> Small Claims Court???

will-ask

I took a £51.5k endowment with Scottish Widows in 91 and duly poured £67 per month down the drain for c. 15 years afterwards. In 2004 I claimed for misselling due to various reasons, including the fact that it was an unsuitable product for me at the point of sale etc ...

In 2004 I was delighted to be told my an Adjudicator at the FOS that he thought my case was proven and issued this opinion to Scottish Widows,
Here is an extract of the email that the FSO's adjudicator sent to me:

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"Dear Mr Askew

I refer to our previous communications regarding your complaint against Scottish Widows Plc.

On dd/mm/2004 I put forward my view to Scottish Widows Plc that your complaint should be upheld on the basis that a member of Scottish Widows Plc provided you with financial advice and that the advice was inappropriate as there was no evidence you were made aware of the risks associated with the endowment policy.

Scottish Widows Plc has responded by claiming there is no evidence its employee provided you with financial advice.

I am unwilling to alter my view of your complaint and propose that your file be passed to an Ombudsman who will make an independent assessment of the evidence and make a decision which would be legally binding on the firm.

I have informed Scottish Widows Plc that I propose to take this course of action and invite your comments before progressing your complaint."

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Due to Scottish Widow's resistance, it went to an Ombudsman at the FSO. The Ombudsman's reasoning was perplexing to say the least and it resulted in an about face, with my claim being rejected.

I eventually rejected the Ombudsman's decision, thereby reserving the right to take court action.

I now wish to start proceedings in the small claims court [I'll go for "£5k"].

I would therefore welcome some advice from you experts, with regards to what to do and expect - at the moment, I haven't a clue how to proceed.

Thanks.

dunstonh

There are no known successes of small claims courts action against endowment advisers for how you will be claiming. There have been some that have won by taking a different approach or using a technicality. However, the numbers are very small.

The FOS generally ignore documents that the court would consider as evidence and the courts would also consider the actions of the FOS and their decision. The FOS requires the firm to prove that it wasnt a mis-sale. The Court will require you to prove that it was.

It appears that you are saying that you were given advice and Scot Wid are saying you were not. What evidence do you have that shows you were given advice (such as a reason why letter) or what evidence do Scot Wid have to show it was execution only (such as application market execution only or execution only letter issued or commission discounted to improve terms)?

EdInvestor

The Reclaim Your Bank Charges forum is likely to be the best place for advice about Small Claims Court actions.