Money For Old Rope

Money For Old Rope

The third party complaint handlers, that do the work that endowment complainees are well able to do themselves, managed to rake in £12M in fees last year.

These companies can charge up to 50% of the compensation awarded, just for filling in the same paperwork that the endowment policy holder should complete himself.

This "easy money" scheme is now being put under pressure by the life assurance companies.

Prudential and Norwich Union have stopped paying compensation for endowment mis-selling to unregulated claims-handling firms.

The Prudential will no longer pay compensation directly to these firms. Instead it will send payments to their clients, who can chose whether or not to pay the intermediary. Norwich Union is understood to have taken a similar stand.

Consumers claiming they were mis-sold an endowment policy by the direct sales forces of the Prudential and Norwich Union are instead being urged to go directly to them.