Equiniti

bluesky9938

Is this a SCAM??

I have recently received a communication from EQUINITI:




Equiniti Financial Services Limited is regulated by the Financial Services Authority (“FSA”) and in accordance with the regulation is seeking to re-establish contact with the individual named in the letter for whom we are currently holding an investment.

If you are the individual named in the letter it is important that you make contact with EFSL in writing within 28 days of this letter providing proof of identity documents as requested. For security reasons we are unable to provide any information regarding this entitlement until these documents have been processed and we can validate your identity.

When submitting the documents please quote the reference number from the letter, and using the enclosed envelope, send them to our registered address at Aspect House, Lancing, West Sussex, BN99 6DA as indicated. This will help us process and return your documents to you as quickly as possible.

I HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO SPEAK TO ANYONE AS ALL THERE IS IS A RECORDED MESSAGE AS PER LETTER

dunstonh

Is this a SCAM??

No.

It is what they do and are a known company.

batsinthebelfry

I too have received this letter, and was rather taken aback by the wording.
I called the county Trading Standards office who were very helpful, and confirmed that there were no negative alerts on their system.
I was advised to call the telephone number on their website, just to make sure that it was issued by, what is seemingly, a legitimate recognized company. I did this, but was unable to speak to anyone, as there is just an answerphone message, repeating exactly what was said in the letter.
It seems to me to be a rather 'dodgy' manner with which to conduct legitimate business, and it certainly made me feel very uncomfortable: especially the paragraph as follows: 'If we receive no response within 28 days of the date of this letter, we may request a professional tracing agent to locate and make contact with the above (named person) .. should they choose to make use of the services of a tracing agent, they may incur a fee.'

My question is this -
Is there any harm in forwarding a utility bill?

Help!! I am on Day 4 of my 28 ..

ealteacher

me too - I got one of these today and posted exactly the same question on this site today.
As I doubt I have taken out any share offers in the last 9 years I am at a loss as to why a legitimate company would have been unable to find me. Not sure about what to do next - and, like you, hoping OK to send utility bill off to them.

ealteacher

PS guess it's a bit like heir hunters as they will get a percentage.......

Webster119

I too, had a letter and rang the call centre. It is to do with Friends Provident Shares (which I sold ages ago) but I did discover that there might be monies owing. The call centre chap was very off'ish to be honest and said it was my loss if I didn't bother to send in the documents. I asked to go in person to Aspect House in Lancing, and he said he didn't know, so I asked for a customer services number. Having already assured me Equiniti are a well known and respected company, I was able to throw this back at him when he said they didn't have a Customer care department. In the end I got the number 01903 854204.

So, this supposedly on-the-level company has a customer care number, which is answered 'Paul' by a very disinterested guy who tells me not to go in person to Aspect House, but to turn up to Highdown House, Yeoman Way, Goring, BN99 3HH with originals of passport and/or driving licence.

I can do this as I live about 15 miles away, but is it worth it? For a few pence of missing dividend? The payments were usually less than 2.6p per share, last ones were 1.p per share.

I think the letters are extremely obtuse, and deliberately written to entice. Those more vulnerable individuals could be seriously worried about this.

Shame on Equiniti

ealteacher

thanks Webster119 - I am drowning a bit in varying levels of 'advice' from this forum and really don't know one way or the other whether to bother sending the bill to them and getting drawn into something which in the end may be suspect/won't be worth the bother - or just to ignore it (but wonder if they DID have something which I deserve!). I don't live anywhere near their office unfortunately! Would love to hear the outcome if you do go - I am well within my 28 days!

SouthernBellE*

http://www.friendslife.co.uk/common/layouts/subSectionLayout.jhtml?pageId=fpcouk%2FSitePageSimple%3Aequiniti_prosearch

ealteacher

thanks SouthernBellE - very informative - I shall be phoning!

ealteacher

Well - I bit the bullet and sent off my utility bill, which was duly returned a couple of weeks later. And to be honest, then I forgot all about it. Till today - when a cheque for £152.66 arrived! Nice surprise - and linked to Friends Provident holdings I had had. They took a fee of £35 (before this balance) but it's still £152 I didn't know was due to me! Car goes in for a service tomorrow - ho hum..... guess where the money will be going.....

MetalMicky

I got a letter from ProSearch and then talked to Equiniti. Had 100 shares in Alliance and Leicester, registered to my parents address. Found out that A&L they had been bought out by Santander, so that's £1200 + 80 Santander shares due to me. Though the "claiming process" takes 10% of the cash.