Transfer to iWeb - 13 months and complete at last!

Alexland

Sippdeal are part of AJ Bell who are involved in the administration of the iWeb SIPP but they won't able to help with an ISA transfer.
Have you tried complaining to the main Halifax CEO office yet? At least it might raise some awareness on what's going wrong with HSD/iWeb transfers. After that maybe complain to the Lloyds CEO office?

Aylesbury_Duck

I'll give that a go, thanks.

soulsaver

tafelmoneysaver said:

I had a case of two extremes this year:
1) transfer from HL SIPP to iWeb SIPP just completed after 7 months
2) transfer from Aviva Workplace pension to iWeb SIPP completed after 7 days! 

I did find that when I emailed websipp@sippdeal.co.uk I got a reply from the person assigned to my case within a day or two. 

Because their SIPP is administered by AJ Bell – not IWeb.

soulsaver

There are incentives to switch to Interactive. Maybe research that route - they don't have the delays (& pack of lies) IWeb have.

If yours is a large pot and/or your investing style suits, you may be no worse off (than with IWeb).

You can get the transfer initiated online (and mine completed in10 working days (cash) when I jettisoned my 6 week old switch to IWontEverBBelievable which hadn't yet started...)

If you're unhappy (and IWeb have resolved their backlog) think you can switch out again for free, too.

Aylesbury_Duck

An update.

Today, almost 13 months after initiating the transfer, my funds have finally arrived in my iWeb account.  The amount of units is correct, so all the expected value is accounted for.  In the end, I had to complain to the CEO's office at Lloyds Banking Group (thanks, @Alexland ) who came back to me in mid January saying they were looking into it but couldn't give a timescale for completion.  I had already started the ombudsman process a few months ago and had just contacted a financial journalist as well.  Today, with no notification, the funds landed.

Thanks to everyone who offered advice.  I can now stand the ombudsman down - I suspect they have enough on their plate.

xylophone

Today, almost 13 months after initiating the transfer, my funds have finally arrived in my iWeb account. 

It's a relief when it's finally all over.

About four years ago (after around six/seven months of hassle) my in specie transfer from ii to iweb finally completed.

I vowed never again......

Aylesbury_Duck

An update on this, because new information came to light.  iWeb have sent a very comprehensive explanation of the chain of events that resulted in this transfer taking so long, right down to dates of correspondence with me, with Vanguard and with their third party agent, Aegon.  Whilst iWeb have acknowledged their failings in the process, it's now clear that Vanguard were particularly unresponsive and unhelpful at several points in the process.  I now have evidence that iWeb chased Vanguard multiple times at three stages in the process without getting a response, or the response was incorrect or incomplete.  This contradicts my belief that Vanguard had done everything asked of them at every stage and that iWeb were solely to blame.  What's been particularly frustrating is that at various stages when I contacted Vanguard to find out what was going on, it seems they either misinformed or misled me, because their responses don't match the new, evidenced timeline iWeb have provided.

Anyway, I thought it fair to set the record straight that Vanguard have certainly played their part in this shambolic transfer.

On the same point, iWeb have offered a modest sum as final settlement, an offer that is open for six months.  I should make clear that "compo" is not my aim here - the £275 they sent months ago went to a local charity, and the £200 they're now offering will go to the same place if I accept it.  Other than about £50 in account fees from Vanguard I wouldn't have paid if the transfer had completed in two months instead of thirteen months, I have suffered no loss.  I still hold accounts with iWeb and Vanguard and do annual transfers between them, so my primary motivation is that their transfer practices are sharpened up.  I haven't yet closed the complaint with the ombudsman.  I will be writing to Vanguard to complain about their part in the process and to request they repay the £50 in fees I needn't have paid, but what do you think I should do about the case with the ombudsman?  Keep it open and see how it unfolds, or take the £200 and close the ombudsman complaint?  Will ombudsman action be better at effecting change at one or both institutions?  I'm not worried about "losing" the £200 by doing so.

masonic

It is not the Ombudsman's place to punish or seek to effect change on a firm. They are always clear on that point. Given what you now know, it would make sense to accept and close the FOS case. I suspect they would be categorise as moderate and look to award between £100-£300, plus the £50 fees, but deduct the £275 already paid, so the offer of £475 in total seems very generous.

Aylesbury_Duck

masonic said:

It is not the Ombudsman's place to punish or seek to effect change on a firm. They are always clear on that point. Given what you now know, it would make sense to accept and close the FOS case. I suspect they would be categorise as moderate and look to award between £100-£300, plus the £50 fees, but deduct the £275 already paid, so the offer of £475 in total seems very generous.

Thanks masonic, just the sort of informed viewpoint I needed.  I shall follow that course of action and forward the sum to my chosen charity.  Thanks.