Moneybox investing my funds without my permission

Moneybox_Theives · 23 March at 4:29PM

Last week i accessed the Moneybox app to top up my ISA with £20000, the first attempt to transfer funds failed. A second attempt sent me back into the app with a big "top up" button, this time though somehow it had put the funds in my pension.

I immediately contacted them to correct the mistake. Six days later they have invested my money in funds despite continual requests that they do not do this. The fund has now lost £400 and is still invested. Surely this can't be legal?

Albermarle · 23 March at 4:34PM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6660962/moneybox-investing-my-funds-without-my-permission

It is not a matter of being legal or illegal. It is a mistake by them that they will hopefully correct soon, and compensate you accordingly.

I guess you will be contacted by the forum administrators soon, to ask that you change your user name to something less libellous.

flaneurs_lobster · 23 March at 4:51PM

I guess you will be contacted by the forum administrators soon, to ask that you change your user name to something less libellous.

Can it be libellous when the accusation is a spelling mistake?

jimjames · 23 March at 5:02PM

sent me back into the app with a big "top up" button, this time though somehow it had put the funds in my pension.

It's a good question as to whether you can remove money that's been paid into your pension. Even if they can I imagine it's a convoluted process to prevent people doing it for other reasons so expecting it to be instant to correct your error is a bit unreasonable. I'm guessing the Top Up was to top up an existing fund and add more to it. If you pay money into your pension to be invested in a specific fund then it would certainly seem to be legal that they follow your instructions. I'd be annoyed if I requested that and they didn't do so.

masonic · 23 March at 5:17PM

I'm not familiar with MoneyBox's system, but I've used three other SIPP providers and in each case when I top up there is some sort of secondary confirmation to prevent against such mistakes and I think confirmation of tax relief to be claimed. Does MoneyBox not have this?

dunstonh · 23 March at 5:20PM

I immediately contacted them to correct the mistake. Six days later they have invested my money in funds despite continual requests that they do not do this. The fund has now lost £400 and is still invested. Surely this can't be legal?

Why not?

You pressed the wrong button. The trades once initiated cannot be stopped. They would have to wait for the trades to settle and then sell them again and wait for that to settle. You are liable for any movements in the markets in between.

If you were the cause of the error (you pressing the top up button to the pension, then you are liable for any losses.

If they were the cause of the error, then you would expect them to make up the difference.

phlebas192 · 23 March at 6:06PM

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6660962/moneybox-investing-my-funds-without-my-permission

It is very hard to correct an accidental payment to a pension scheme. It can be done if it is an administrative error by the scheme administrators, but that is not the situation here. You made the mistake, not them.

About the only possibility would be if your total pension payments for this tax year exceeded your relevent earnings. If that is the case then you can request a repayment of the excess, but only up to the amount of the excess so not necessarily the full £20k.

As for the drop in fund value, presumably you have instructed Moneybox to automatically invest any contributions received. If that is the case then they have acted entirely correctly.