Scottish Widows ISA-Compensation?

Otter

I have had a Scottish Widows Shares Isa since September 2010 and recently had a letter from the Halifax who I got it through saying the FCA have instructed them to write to all customers sold these products as some may have been misold.
"Looking on the internet it seems if at the point of purchase, your advisor did not take into account:
* Your financial situation, including existing investments and experience in this area
* Your understanding of how a stocks and shares ISA differs from a cash ISA, specifically the associated risk
* Your attitude to risk and how you would be affected by a significant loss in investment
* Your future plans for the investment
* Any unique circumstances that could affect your financial status
* The investment’s complexity and potential risk
If you did not receive any of this information pre-sale or if it was unclear and misleading then you may well have been mis-sold an ISA"

I am unsure how to proceed, I have never been able to understand the charges with this product, I was completely new to this type of investment and have just left it there, unsure what it costs me, if it's doing well and whether it was the right choice for me or not. If there was a template for these misold share ISA I would go for it but alone I feel uninformed.Any guidance would e gratefully received.

Linton

It doesnt read as a serious money-losing sort of mis-selling, more a matter of the correct procedures not having been followed, or perhaps not documented as having been followed.

The Shares ISA is just a container for an investment - what was the investment? If it was a mainstream general investment then it should have done moderately well over the past 6 years, certainly better than cash, and I would doubt whether compensation would be appropriate. On the other hand if it was something outlandish that lost all your money then compensation would seem to be in order.

dunstonh

I have never been able to understand the charges with this product, I was completely new to this type of investment and have just left it there,

Charges did appear on the original documentation in a number of places. So, no issues there.
Being new to it is not a problem.

if it's doing well and whether it was the right choice for me or not.

Do you read your statements? They give you the values.

. If there was a template for these misold share ISA I would go for it but alone I feel uninformed.

A template would ask you to list the reasons you think they did wrong. So, what did they do wrong?

These S166a letters have been going out all over the place. Most of the ones I have seen have actually had no identifiable wrongdoing. Some have. Most common one iwth Halifax was not using the ISA allowance but putting it all in an investment bond.

I also spoke to someone a couple of years ago that had a S166a review put in place and they wanted as many cases checked as possible as markets were high and even if cases were found to be wrong, there would be little or no redress payable and it would limit future liabilities.

They are not saying you were mis-sold. Just giving you the opportunity for a review of your sale if you have a concern about the sale.

If they decide you were advised wrongly they can void the product you are in.

coyrls

Looking on the internet it seems if at the point of purchase, your advisor did not take into account

Is that really what it says "Looking on the internet it seems"? That seems a very unlikley form of words from a financial institution.

bigadaj

Otter wrote: »

I have had a Scottish Widows Shares Isa since September 2010 and recently had a letter from the Halifax who I got it through saying the FCA have instructed them to write to all customers sold these products as some may have been misold.
"Looking on the internet it seems if at the point of purchase, your advisor did not take into account:
* Your financial situation, including existing investments and experience in this area
* Your understanding of how a stocks and shares ISA differs from a cash ISA, specifically the associated risk
* Your attitude to risk and how you would be affected by a significant loss in investment
* Your future plans for the investment
* Any unique circumstances that could affect your financial status
* The investment’s complexity and potential risk
If you did not receive any of this information pre-sale or if it was unclear and misleading then you may well have been mis-sold an ISA"

I am unsure how to proceed, I have never been able to understand the charges with this product, I was completely new to this type of investment and have just left it there, unsure what it costs me, if it's doing well and whether it was the right choice for me or not. If there was a template for these misold share ISA I would go for it but alone I feel uninformed.Any guidance would e gratefully received.

Can you post the amount you invested and what you now have. Also a summary of what other savings and investment products you hold, so cash isas, stocks and shares isas, pension or anything more complicated.

It sounds as if you aren't a soPhisticated investor, in which case this product has probably returned far more than you would have received from a basic savings account. In that case even if you were Mis sold you are actually better off, so there's no compo or redress.