Mis-sold or naive?

scotsrick

In 1989 I started a private pension with the co-op.

In 2005 (I think) a representative from Royal London persuaded me to cancel this and take out a policy with his company as to use his words if I recall correctly. 'your existing policies haven't paid any bonuses for 2 years'

It is only now when I am heading toward retirement that i realise that the policy I gave up had a GAR of approx 12% on a pot of £32k.

Was this mis-selling (and if so what do I do about it) or just ..tough you should know what you are getting yourself into?

dunstonh

Was this mis-selling (and if so what do I do about it) or just ..tough you should know what you are getting yourself into?

We have very little to go on. CIS GARs are normally very low. TYpically lower than current market rates. They did stop paying bonuses on plans with GARs. So, a transfer out on a low GAR would not be unreasonable. However, on a 12% GAR it could well be bad advice.

Was this mis-selling (and if so what do I do about it) or just ..tough you should know what you are getting yourself into?

Personally, I wouldnt have transferred a 12% GAR.
However, with hindsight, it may not be something that resulted in a loss. If no bonuses continued to be paid then the value remains the same. So loss of growth over nearly 15 years would have seen you miss out on doubling (or more). So, its 12% on a small amount vs say 6% on a larger amount. I haven't seen an ex CIS policy for many years. So, don't know if they restarted bonuses or not.

I think you have to raise a complaint. Even if it is for your piece of mind. I suspect it will be upheld and there will be redress.

scotsrick

Thanks Dunstonh. That's very useful information.

How would I go about raising a complaint? Do I simply write to Royal London stating the facts (ironically Royal London now handles the policy I cancelled) as the first port of call?

I see they have an email address for complaints. Would this be suitable?

Obvious questions I know but new territory for me.

dunstonh

How would I go about raising a complaint? Do I simply write to Royal London stating the facts (ironically Royal London now handles the policy I cancelled) as the first port of call?

Pretty much write what you have here. Bullet point style complaints are best and keep it short and sweet. Some people think they have to write war and peace but you should avoid that. What you have written in your first post here is enough for them to investigate. The FCA requires them to check every aspect of the sale and not just the bit you mention.

I would avoid email unless its the email address on their complaints page on their website.

scotsrick

I've looked through all my old papers and surprisingly I found details of the policy bought.

It turns out it was sold to me by a localish IFA (although how he came to contact me i've no idea)

Does this help/hinder/completely screw my case and should it still be Royal London that I am approaching?

dunstonh

It turns out it was sold to me by a localish IFA (although how he came to contact me i've no idea)

It makes a bit of a difference as the Royal London product sold via IFAs was actually very good quality and low cost. The Royal London direct sales force has old fashioned products at high prices.

Does this help/hinder/completely screw my case and should it still be Royal London that I am approaching?

Royal london have no liability for the advice given by IFAs. So, contact the IFA. However, before you put in a formal complaint, have a word with the IFA first. They may well have covered it off in their research and analysis. Unlike big faceless firms, complaints against IFAs are very personal. They can impact the adviser negatively in a number of ways which does not happen with big firms. Even with rejected complaints. So, chatting things through with the first would be a good idea. Then if you feel it needs to go to a complaint, you can still do that.