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If you have an FSAVC pension from Merchant Investors then there is a chance that this may have been mis-sold and you may be entitled to compensation as a result. The way that many of these plans have been arranged unfortunately does not comply with the requirements for selling this type of financial product. That’s why you may be entitled to compensation, especially if you have suffered loss as a result.

The FSAVC pension

The Free Standing Additional Voluntary Contribution (FSAVC) pension is an extra pension plan that is separate from the pension you may have with an employer. It is supposed to be a simple way for anyone to put away additional money for retirement years. However, due to the mis-selling of FSAVC pensions many people have ended up not enjoying these benefits and instead losing significant value in the pension due to the high charges that have been applied. As a result, many are now due compensation – if you have an FSAVC pension from Merchant Investors then that could also be you.

How do I know if I was mis-sold an FSAVC pension from Merchant Investors?

Although every case is different there are some common signs that there may have been mis-selling of an FSAVC pension from Merchant Investors. These include:

• You were not offered an alternative to the FSAVC pension. If you’re looking to make additional contributions to your pension then there are a number of different ways to do this. However, if during the process of selling FSAVC pensions, the alternative options were often simply not discussed and information not provided – even where another option would have been the better choice – then the FSAVC pension could have been mis-sold.
• There was no discussion of the transfer penalties. If you were sold an FSAVC pension but the advisor didn’t bring up the high transfer penalties attached to the product then it may have been mis-sold. These penalties create significant lack of flexibility and mean that many consumers have not been able to transfer the policy.
• FSAVC pension was not the right product. For example, if you were planning on staying with your current employer until you retired then there was no need for you to be sold a portable pension product like an FSAVC pension. If an employer offers a final salary pension scheme in-house then this is likely to be a much more attractive and beneficial product for most people.
• Risk attitude assessment was not made. FSAVC pensions are a product that can generate some high returns for people but also have a much higher risk involved than other products. That’s why it’s important for the attitude to risk of an individual investment to be assessed to ensure it’s appropriate. If an advisor didn’t do this then the pension may have been mis-sold.

If any of these apply then you may have been mis-sold an FSAVC pension and you may be entitled to compensation that will put you back in the position you would have been in if you’d never been sold this product. To find out more about compensation claims against MI Group (Merchant Investors) refer to our website…