Problems with Investment Company

[Hereabout]

******* **** refuse to pay my wife on the maturity of the unit trusts she's been paying into for the past 40 years on a policy sold to her by her Father in 1973, why? Because she has Alzheimer's disease and can't sign the form to say she wants her own money! In the meantime what happens to her investment? ******* **** keep it! Do they add interest to her inaccessible nest egg? You bet they don't! Well at least they will pay her sister who is the policy trustee when the inevitable happens, that's some consolation then, when she needs it the most she can't have it! Do ******* **** treat me like a half baked alien when I try to resolve the situation over the telephone, are they helpful, what do you think? "sorry sir I can only speak to the policy holder", is there a way around this problem? Oh yes I spoke to a local solicitor who tells me I can obtain deputyship allowing me to claim the investment on her behalf. The cost of deputyship? Around £2000 plus costs of a few hundred quid! Well there is a lot of paperwork involved! Is it worth it? You bet it's not! Makes you proud to be British doesn't it! Would you take out an investment of this duration knowing this could happen to you, no I didn't think so! Makes you wonder how much unclaimable cash is sloshing around in the coffers of our great investment institutions doesn't it? Investors beware, this could be you and yours!

Does being married for over 45 years and only having joint bank accounts mean that I can help in this situation and act in her best interests? No you bet it doesn't! Surely this is discrimination against the most vulnerable members of our society, surely it's a breach of their human rights? Do you think this makes me so mad I can't sleep at night because among other things the blatant injustice of it all is on my mind? What do you think? Keyed in at 3.15am.

 

[2jays]

Do you hold power of attorney? I'm guessing you don't.

My thoughts
Contact their head office and make a formal complaint then contact citizens advice.



Sent from my iPhone using Talking Point

 

[Kevinl]

Hi Hereabout, welcome to TP
I'd try one of the financial people on the newspapers and see if they'd be willing to take it up for you likewise you could try a TV programme like BBC Watchdog.
When companies scent some bad publicity their attitude sometimes does change, likewise if you do if by e-mail rather than on the phone people's attitude can change when they have to put it in writing.
My feeling is that they are "technically" in the right if you don't have a POA for your wife then you don't have the legal right to act on her behalf, whilst I'm sure you're an upright member of society the rules are made to protect people from exploitation and there are some people out there who do take advantage.
With hindsight it's a pity they found out about the AZ had you written in asking to redeem the policy then you could have typed the letter so it just needed a signature which I'm sure could be managed not that I'm advocating any wrong doing.
K

 

[Saffie]

The cost of deputyship? Around £2000 plus costs of a few hundred quid! Well there is a lot of paperwork involved! Is it worth it? You bet it's not! Makes you proud to be British doesn't it! Would you take out an investment of this duration knowing this could happen to you, no I didn't think so! Makes you wonder how much unclaimable cash is sloshing around in the coffers of our great investment institutions doesn't it? Investors beware, this could be you and yours!

I'm sorry but that quote for costs is not correct at all - and it is very much worth it.
The application to be a Deputy costs £400. You will also have to purchase an insurance bond, the amount of which varies according to the size of the estate. There will also be annual OPG overseeing costs which will not be exhorbitant and are no even applicable below a certain amount.

A solicitor will charge it's true, but it is not that difficult to arrange Deputyship yourself.
I have done it and so have a number of people on TP.
Of course, it's better to have arranged LPA before this is necessary but if this hasn't been done, then Deputyship is the only way to be able to manage the affairs of someone with capital and dementia I'm afraid.

 

[Hereabout]

Do you hold power of attorney? I'm guessing you don't.

My thoughts
Contact their head office and make a formal complaint then contact citizens advice.



Sent from my iPhone using Talking Point

It would not have been possible to obtain power of attorney. My wife did not and still does not recognise there was/is anything wrong with her. I had great difficulty getting help in the early days because the good old data protection act means only the individual concerned can seek help. Looks like diy deputyship is the only option, with the costs that entails reducing any benefit from the modest maturity value.

 

[Hereabout]

I'm sorry but that quote for costs is not correct at all - and it is very much worth it.
The application to be a Deputy costs £400. You will also have to purchase an insurance bond, the amount of which varies according to the size of the estate. There will also be annual OPG overseeing costs which will not be exhorbitant and are no even applicable below a certain amount.

A solicitor will charge it's true, but it is not that difficult to arrange Deputyship yourself.
I have done it and so have a number of people on TP.
Of course, it's better to have arranged LPA before this is necessary but if this hasn't been done, then Deputyship is the only way to be able to manage the affairs of someone with capital and dementia I'm afraid.

I was simply quoting the figure I was quoted by a local solicitor to deal with the deputyship arrangement. The £2,000 was the solicitor costs and as you say a few hundred for the COP fees. As the maturity value is only in this region it would be a pointless exercise (through the solicitor). I am well aware of the reasoning behind the need for a deputyship arrangement where unrelated third parties are involved. As husband and wife for over 45 years this seems like a sledge hammer to crack a walnut and a less expensive more local arrangement should be available where close relatives are involved. To some people £400 plus is a lot of money, it represents over 15% of the value of the maturity value of the investment in question. This is the only reason I would need deputyship.

As mentioned on a previous reply my wife did not recognise she had a problem and still does not although she is in the later stages of AZ, she is now by the way going through a very pleasant phase. In the early stages she was on occasions violent and argumentative. For all these reasons POA was not an option she would have agreed to.

 

[Saffie]

I was not an unrelated third-party where my Deputyship was involved as it was for my husband.
Unfortunately, as I had only the married woman's part of his state pension and a minute teacher's pension, I needed access to my husband's capital to ensure access to our joint bank account should they become aware of my husband's dementia as well as being able to pay his nursing home fees. In fact the Deputyship did make many things easier to manage.
Even full access to hospital notes and GP records was possible because I was able to say that I needed the information as I was applying for CHC funding in my role as Deputy.

The application really isn't that hard to do, a bit onerous but the CoP are very helpful as are people here.

 

[nitram]

****** **** is the result of several mergers, if you PM the name of the investment company the product was originally bought from I will see if I can find the email address of the relevant senior executive. You could then ask if there is any way of releasing the funds short of involving the COP.

I don't hold out much hope but an email won't cost anything and is worth a try.

 

[Scarlett123]

I haven't experienced the same problem, but after my husband died, I was driven to distraction, by several insurance companies. who were loathe to pay out on my husband's policies, and kept putting obstacles in the way, or denying receipt of Death Certificates.

I solved one of these problems by sending an email to the CEO, and the money was in my account by the next day, having wasted distressing weeks, making phone calls to no avail. Another problem with a different insurance company, needed me to send an email to the entire Board of Directors - but it worked.

You can access the email addresses easily via Google, and if you need any help, please PM me, and I'm only too happy to assist. The lack of compassion shown by these organisations, when your loved one is ill, or has died, is dreadful.

 

[sue38]

You may be entitled to a fee exemption or remission. Have a look at this guidance https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/deputy-fees-remission-or-exemption