Insurer Has Cancelled My Endowment 5 Years After Missed Payments!

Beth72

Please please can anyone offer any help/advice. I have found out days ago that my insurer has cancelled my endowment policy (for repaying my mortgage) stating that I broke a clause in the policy 5 years ago when I missed payments.

They state the policy has been allowed to run on in error and should have been cancelled in roughly 2009!

I was living abroad at the time the payments were missed, and this only happened as I had attempted to a more international friendly bank, who turned out to be rubbish and had to go back to my old faithful bank, but in the meantime payments were missed. I was under the impression that I had paid all missed payments by cheque and have heard nothing from them in the following years to say different.

Unfortunately I forgot to change my address when I returned from working abroad so they have beenwriting to me in Australia since earlier this year!

They say that despite the error on their part, the will not reinstate the policy and my only option is to make a complaint.

Now, here is the problem. I am currently a single mother, battling with depression due to circumstances during/after my pregnancy. I am living in my home but am in receipt of income support and mortgage assistance and at the moment I struggling to live week to week.

I had been paying the endowment policy since 2008. I am not in a position to accomodate any further expenses at the moment.

Would appreciate some advice:
a) I take it that it would be impossible to get a mortgage while on IS..? (I cant afford it anyway)
b) do interest only mortgages even exist anymore..?
c) do endowment policies exist any more..? I contacted said ins company who advised they dont do these any more, and they are a BIG company (would happily divulge their identity but perhaps better to wait until result of complaint).

And you know what stinks even more about all this, I actually WORKED for the company for 18 years!!!

Would appreciate any advice folks, cant sleep, cant stop crying and my little one is getting the brunt of all this cos am struggling to cope because of the worry now of losing our home

opinions4u

What have they done with the proceeds / surrender value of the policy?

maninthestreet

So what has happened to the money you paid into this policy??

Sinhanada

I would say that if the policy should have been cancelled in 2009 then you should be entitled to payments you have made since then + interest. Have they made any sort of offer of this nature?

kingstreet

Under the non-forfeiture regulations contained in the policy, the investment element has probably been used to fund the life cover and cover the charges during the time premiums have been missed.

Beth72

Thank you to all for responses so far, the company have advised they will pay out surrender value of policy but as yet I dont know how much this is, but am guessing it wont be a particularly large amount.

I guess where i am coming from is that due to my financial situation and personal circumstances, I am not sure that I would be able to get another mortgage now. I only had years left to pay

Am also terrified that I will lose my house after all these years and leave myself and little one homeless

maninthestreet

When was the policy taken out, and how much have you been paying each month? What is the outstanding balance on the mortgage and how many years are left?