UK ENDOWMENT MIS SELLING
EXPERT ADVICE

We are a specialist firm dealing with endowment mis selling claims for underperforming insurance policies which have been sold by a life company, broker or solicitor. We operate on a no win no fee basis and our claims are completely risk free. We guarantee that if you do not receive compensation then you will not be charged a penny. If you have received a 'Red' or 'Amber' letter from your life assurance company indicating that your policy is at risk of a shortfall and you would like free advice without obligation then just use the phone number or complete the contact form and an expert insurance actuary who is registered by the Financial Services Authority will give free advice without any further obligation.

To succeed in a an application for compensation it must be proved not only that the policy fund underperformed but also that the policy was miss sold. Proving that it underperformed is not difficult as an application for compensation can only be made after receipt of a red letter which is an effective admission of underperformance by the life insurance company. The basis of a complaint is in regards to whether proper financial advice was given and in particular whether you were warned of the various risks of a life insurance policy. There are four main categories of complaint however life insurance companies must consider all applications :-

• Suitability of the endowment
  • Your financial adviser should have made sure that an endowment was the best way of repaying your mortgage loan based on your financial circumstances at the time and your attitude to risk. Items which may indicate unsuitability include :-
    • failure to discuss other methods of loan repayment
    • failure to explain about investment and the risks involved in investments
    • failure to advise that a life insurance policy is a long term commitment and gives a poor return if cashed in early
    • failure to ensure that you were aware of stock market risks
    • failure to advise that the amount that you would get back depended on the performance of the investment fund which could go down as well as up
    • unfulfilled guarantees that the mortgage would be paid off on maturity of the policy

• The financial regulators imposed rules intended to prevent endowment mis selling however some advisors failed to comply with the regulations. These failures may include :-
  • failure to explain fees and charges and their effect on the savings fund
  • failure to provide information on charges and cash in values over the first 5 years
  • for policies taken out after 1 January 1995 you should have been given a Key Features document detailing fees and charges and their effect over the longer term
  • failure to complete a fact-find

• Policy Churning :-
  • If an adviser suggested cashing in an old policy and taking out a new policy then he is guilty of ‘churning’ the only advantage of which is that the advisor receives a higher commission than he might otherwise have received if he sold just a top up policy. Generally speaking the effect of churning is to leave the client's funds depleted and is against the Financial Services Authority rules.

• Financial difficulties in retirement :-
  • If the mortgage was to continue into retirement an advisor should have ensured that you would have sufficient funds to pay the mortgage interest and the insurance premiums.