I would appreciate any advice. H.D., Suffolk.
I completely agree with you. To offer £100 after sending letters threatening legal action for a year is insulting.Barclaycard knew you were dealing with your husband’s affairs due to his very poor health. The bank should have made more effort to sort out the issue earlier.
After I intervened, the bank increased its offer to £250, but I felt this was still not enough. You had been put through considerable distress at a time when you already had far too much on your plate.
Barclays could have sorted out this problem very easily but failed to do so.
I pointed its staff towards the Financial Ombudsman’s guidance on compensation. They have now upped the
payment to £500, which I think is more appropriate.
I became ill with heart problems in 2005, had four stents inserted in my arteries in 2005 and 2006 then suffered five heart attacks from April 2007 onwards. I was diagnosed as being critically ill in January 2006 and have not worked since.I made a claim on my Halifax critical illness policy, which was dated to January 1, 2006. But in the ensuing years I have had to spend many months and much money tracking down and getting copies of medical records from several NHS trusts.In June last year Halifax finally settled my claim and paid off the outstanding loan of £7,087.The period of payment is from September 26, 2008 to January 4, 2011. I have met the monthly repayments since the claim start-date of January 1, 2006, so I consider that the extra £7,000-plus that I paid in premiums should be reimbursed. D.B., Aberdeenshire.
I have been struggling with your case for weeks because it is exceedingly complicated. First, you did not have a critical illness policy, and I suspect this lies at the root of much of the misunderstanding — it was an accident, sickness and unemployment policy.
The difference is crucial. A critical illness policy would have paid a lump sum to clear the whole loan on you becoming ill. The policy you have was designed to cover your monthly repayments for a maximum of 60 months. Halifax has now done this, and this is where the £7,087 comes from. The fact that this is also the amount needed to clear your loan is purely coincidental.
I have read the correspondence from Halifax. You have received two formal complaint responses both written in unintelligible, legalistic language. Neither spells out the simple misunderstanding in terms that any normal person could be expected to understand.
So what caused the delays? Halifax says you did not contact it to request a claim form until November 2006, then requested a further one in November 2008. It says the completed form was received in January 2011.
Your medical problems and the fact you had to hunt around for the evidence would explain this delay. Although your doctor responded to inquiries by Halifax, the medical records were not received until April 2012. Halifax then made a mistake and used the money to pay off the loan when it should have sent a cheque to you instead because you had kept up loan payments.
It has now rectified this and added 8 per cent interest from June 26, making £219.02. You will also receive a refund of premiums paid since February 2011, worth £221.54, plus a further £90.90 for interest on the claim payment from when the medical evidence was received to when payment was issued. In total the extra will be £531.46.
You have chosen to use the cheque to repay your loan, which seems the sensible thing to do.
My husband worked for Time Products for 37 years and paid into its pension scheme. On his retirement he received £92 a month. During the intervening years the scheme was taken over by Legal & General. When my husband died in December 2010 I was told I’d receive a pension of £67.96 a month.After a couple of months this was reduced to £59.47. I queried this with Legal & General, but was told that this was because my husband was 15 years older than me. I know this is not a big pension, but it buys my winter wood and coal.Is L&G allowed to do this? It has offered me £50 compensation. E.C., Norfolk.
The simple answer to your question is ‘yes’. Many occupational pension schemes have clauses in them allowing the trustees to reduce the payment if a widow or widower is more than ten years younger than their spouse. This is because the pension will probably have to be paid for much longer.
In the case of the Time Products scheme, the spouse’s annuity is reduced by 2.5 per cent for each complete year that you are younger in excess of ten years. So in your case it would be five times 2.5 per cent, which is 12.5 per cent.
If you’d been older you would have received £815.52 year. But you will get 87.5 per cent of this, which is £713.58. Legal & General will allow you to keep the overpayment of £33.96 and the £50 compensation it offered. I know this must feel unfair, but I can assure you it is by no means unique.
Straight to the pointWhen I switched from British Gas in September there was a mix-up over meter readings. I was told my final gas bill would be held back till it was sorted. So why was I was sent a letter from a debt collection agency last month? N.Y., Andover.
British Gas says the problem arose because it was not notified when you moved into the property. This meant the account was not in your name but in that of ‘the occupier’.
As a result, the unpaid bill was passed on to its debt collection department. But it says it should have acted faster and has apologised.
My husband can no longer use his mobile phone due to a medical condition. I told Orange, but it continues to take £17.93 a month out of our bank account. C.P., Guildford.
Orange says when a customer or family member sends medical documents to prove they are unable to use their phone or manage the contract, it will cancel the contract without charge. It apologises that you weren’t informed of this, and will work to close the account.
My partner turns 65 in March. Will his increased tax allowance be due in the 2012/13 year or will he only get it in the 2013/14 year? P.G., by email.
Those aged over 65 and 75 are entitled to higher tax-free personal allowances — the age-related allowance. Your partner’s is due in the current 2012/2013 year.
He should receive a P161 form from the HMRC a few weeks before his birthday. It needs to be filled out and returned to receive the increased amount. If his net income is more than £25,400, the age-related allowance will be reduced.
If he has any problems, he should call HMRC on 0845 300 0627 with his National Insurance number.
I’m on a pre-payment energy meter but haven’t had a bill for a year. E.ON says it is not obligated to send bills to customers who pay in advance any more. Is this true? C.B., West Yorkshire.
E.ON tells me: ‘We’ve spoken to the customer and explained that pre-payment statements are sent annually to show how much energy has been used and the payments that have been made.’
Do I have to pay tax on money I earn from using cashback websites? V.B., London.
No. Cashback is not treated as income for tax purposes, so doesn’t need to be declared.