Mis-Sold An Endowment Policy? Watch Out For Unregulated Firms Offering Help
March 2005
It’s not a scam as such but certainly something to be aware of.
If you’ve been mis-sold an Endowment Mortgage you may have seen adverts appearing from companies offering to ‘fight your corner’ and sort your claim out on your behalf. For a fat fee of course ranging from 25%-40% of any monies recovered.
Still, at least they have the decency to operate on a no-win no-fee basis.
Most of these firms however are non-regulated so BEWARE. In fact beware of any financial firm that is not regulated by the Financial Service Authority.
Rumours in the Personal Finance world state that these firms are likely to generate profits of millions from unsuspecting homeowners. Homeowners who don’t realise that if due for compensation they can get it by utilising free advice.
But why is this sector within the mortgage industry in such a mess? Simply put many savers were NOT advised of the risk and fully expected their loans to be repaid with a cash surplus.
Insurance companies have now allocated £1billion plus for compensation.
If you have an endowment shortfall it's advisable not to talk to any company that charges a percentage of any compensation won. Instead, first contact your provider (also a good idea to search around on the net to get some further information).
If unsuccessful then contact the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). However if you were sold your policy by a solicitor the FOS won’t help you, instead you must contact the Law Society and follow their complaints procedure.
Contacts
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