Halifax Mortgage protection insurance

cmanning_2

Hi fellow savers.

Firstly part of me feels really stupid regarding this secondly i feel ive been mislead. Id like your opinions as i'm not sure at all whether this situation is completely my doing or ive been duped.

Some Facts i have found / confirmed in the past week:
in June 2007 i bought my first flat and got a mortgage with Halifax for £57k. between 2007 and 2010 i changed rates 2 times.
In July 2010 i Moved house and had a new mortgage with Halifax for £100k and in 2012 i changed to Natwest as a provider.

Here's the thing in 2007 Halifax opened a mortgage protection insurance policy for me (i Wasn't aware) with the mortgage. The cost was £14per month direct debit. And it covered £57000 in case of death etc.

This is the bit i feel stupid about:
I never noticed the £14 per month as an insurance policy as it always showed as Halifax on my statements. I Have a small CC with halifax and another account with them so i always assumed it payment for one of those and as it was such a small amount i never queried it.
Last month reviewing my finances i saw the £14 and thought it was for my CC which i have paid off so i called to complain to the CC department about double charging but obviously they knew nothing about it. I managed to find out from my bank that it was for Insurance.
I called the insurance team believing it was an old home insurance policy that hadn't been closed or something however they told me it was mortgage protection and gave me a number to ring.

I called them they said it was opened at the time of my 1st mortgage and was tied to it. After telling them that mortgage had been closed in 2009 they said i could cancel the policy and they would waive the account cancellation fee!!!

Now although i should have kept an eye on this more closely and believe me i feel like an idiot but i also do feel firstly i was not aware of it being opened. 2nd that they should have closed it when the mortgage finished.

Please let me know your thoughts but also go gently on me

[Deleted User]

It's down to you.

It would still have paid out if the worst had happened, even though you no longer had a mortgage, The proceeds would have gone to your estate.

They would only have been able to close it at your request.

[Deleted User]

cmanning wrote: »

. And it covered £57000 in case of death etc.

You realise that's Life Insurance, not PPI?

It was your own responsibility to cancel this insurance, not the Banks. Although part of your mortgage package, it would still have paid out to your estate if you had died.

Nothing you have said indicates any wrong-doing by the Bank and it just serves to illustrate how important it is to check bank account statements regularly.

I doubt any complaint would net you a refund.

McKneff

Halifax would not have opened an insrance policy without your signature confrming that you have read and understood the terms and conditions.

Do you have any paperwork at all

dunstonh

but i also do feel firstly i was not aware of it being opened.

Life assurance plans require your GP details and a medical questionnaire to be completed. How do you think that information was given to them if you didnt do it?

2nd that they should have closed it when the mortgage finished.

And what if you had died a week after that? Your beneficiaries would then be complaining they cancelled it without permission.

Lots of people keep their life assurance running after repaying the mortgage. So, why should Halifax cancel something without being told to?

cmanning_2

Hey guys thanks for the responses. I did say i felt stupid!

After posting my rant it did make me realise i am probably 100% to blame, and i should've kept an eye on what was happening however i am feeling good that my checks on my expenses is finding things i can change and that it's definitely worth the time.

Just one point although i probably did sign the paper work without checking thoroughly as a naive 20 something year old, however i definitely did not provide my Drs details (i wasn't registered at a Dr's for most of my late teens / 20's) which asks the question to what this is actually for. I'll call up again and find out.

Thanks guys

dunstonh

Hey guys thanks for the responses. I did say i felt stupid!

When you arrange the mortgage on a house purchase, your priority is the mortgage and the house. Things like the insurances are low priority and you tend to forget the detail of what was said about them very quickly.

Just one point although i probably did sign the paper work without checking thoroughly as a naive 20 something year old, however i definitely did not provide my Drs details (i wasn't registered at a Dr's for most of my late teens / 20's) which asks the question to what this is actually for. I'll call up again and find out.

Without GP details, you cannot set up life assurance. If you told them you had no current GP then they would ask you for the last one you used as they would retain your records.