26/09/2011 - Exactly how many??
Half a dozen times in the last month, Mark Hoban has received written questions as to how many of the million Equitable policyholders acknowledged as due to receive compensation have so far received payments, since he trumpeted that the first cheques had gone out on June 29. The answer, over and over again has been ‘hundreds’ — unbelievable! And it is EMAG's impression that thus far NO with–profits annuitant at all appears to have received a payment.
The 945,000 people who are not Equitable annuitants and who are expecting a cheque are getting a shock when they find that the cheque is only for one fifth of what the Treasury estimates as their losses. Mark Hoban says that the Scheme administrators, National Savings and Investments, aspire to have distributed £500m by next April.
When the with–profits annuitants do finally start to receive payments (and maybe that won't even be this year) they will be unpleasantly surprised to learn that the compensation due to them to the year 2009 will be paid out in five annual instalments, in many cases taking until the year 2016 to receive effectively their back pay.
01/09/2011 - EMAG’s AGM 17 November
The EMAG AGM will once again be held at the Birmingham Midland Institute at 2.00pm on Thursday 17 November. EMAG's report and accounts should be received by members in mid-October.
02/07/2011 - Government starts sending letters but it will take 12 months
EMAG is being bombarded with enquiries from people demanding to know where their cheque is. As EMAG is not privy to how the Treasury is operating its scheme, please ask them.
The sending of one million letters will be spread out over 12 months between now and June 2012.
Treasury minister Mark Hoban has made much of his promise that the first compensation cheques will go out on 30 June 2011. But he's not made clear that those WPAs due to receive ‘100% of their relative losses’ will receive the sum due to them up to 2009 in five small annual payments, taking until 2016. And as yet, we have no idea how the calculations are to be made or how many will actually get any payment at all this summer.
If you receive an offer letter, then please share it with EMAG by contacting us offer@emag.org.uk.
To help everybody, we need to hear from people who HAVE received offers, not people who haven't! Thank you.
Where to address your questions:
http://equitablelifepaymentscheme.independent.gov.uk/
Helpline numbers:
General enquiries only: phone 0300 0200 150
Calls are charged at UK national rates. Lines are open between 8am–8pm Monday to Friday (except on bank holidays) and 8am–12pm Saturday. This service is for general enquiries only. For your security we cannot discuss individual cases and our operators have no access to your personal or policy details.
Overseas calls: phone 0141 232 1377
31/03/2011 - Next meeting of the APPG
MPs will be invited to attend the next meeting of the all party Parliamentary group for Justice for Equitable Life Policyholders, to be held in Committee Room 8 in the House of Commons on the afternoon of Wednesday 18 May. Please inform your MP.
There are currently 70 MPs members of the group. Is yours? www.emag.org.uk/justice_group.php
31/03/2011 - Sharon Bowles MEP
On 25 March, Paul Braithwaite of EMAG met with Sharon Bowles, who has taken an active interest in righting injustice to Equitable Life policyholders since EMAG took its petition to Brussels in 2005. Sharon is now chair of the all-powerful EMAC (Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee). She promised to take the matter further with the UK Treasury.
21/02/2011 - Answering your questions
EMAG is being deluged with enquiries about the compensation scheme. Policyholders do not understand whether they are eligible, how their compensation will be calculated, when they will receive notification and when their payment will be made. The Treasury 's FAQ page provides some answers.
But EMAG doesn 't see why we should be doing the Treasury 's job, so we 're encouraging policyholders to write to their MPs to ask them to obtain the above information of their behalf!
It 's a highly complex situation. For example, for with profits policyholders who did not take their with profits pensions with Equitable Life, ONLY those premiums paid into the society between 31 December 1992 and 31 December 2000 are counted towards calculating the individual 's "relative loss". Further reading: The report of the independent Commission.
21/02/2011 - No it 's NOT sorted!
The Coalition's propaganda machine has been busy: MPs have been given this "bullshit" line to propagate. This from Lib Dem MP Lynne Featherstone's website:
"We have agreed a deal on Equitable Life which is fair to policy owners and the tax payer. This will finally bring an end to a terrible saga which Labour wouldn't resolve."
21/02/2011 - EMAG's report and accounts
All current members should have received the EMAG full Report and Accounts in the first week of January. But it is apparent that quite a few went astray. If by chance you never received or you have mislaid your EMAG renewal form, please Email: paulbraithwaite@gmail.com
Some non-members have complained that they have not seen the accounts. Though not obliged to publish them, here are the EMAG accounts for 2009–2010.
21/02/2011 - EMAG's new director
The board of EMAG welcomes Colin Downes. He has been EMAG's regional co-ordinator in the West Midlands for two years. He was co-opted to the board of EMAG in December and his appointment was ratified at the AGM on 26th Jan, 2011.
21/02/2011 - News of the all-party group
The new all-party Equitable Life group, which EMAG administers, has grown in number to 70 MPs. Is yours one of them?
http://www.emag.org.uk/justice_group.php
The next meeting of the group is expected to take place in mid-May (tbc).
21/02/2011 - Catch up on the Equitable saga
Probably the fastest way to catch up on developments over the past roller-coaster year is to just read back on the EMAG quotes of the week: http://www.emag.org.uk/quote_archive.php
07/02/2011 - Mark Hoban’s explanation
On 19 Jan Mark Hoban wrote a detailed explanation to Norwich South’s MP, Simon Wright, to explain his rationale.27/01/2011 - EMAG’s AGM
For the first time in a decade EMAG experimented with holding the AGM out of London, in Birmingham and in the afternoon. It was a considerable success, with 120 members attending. All EMAG directors were present except Nicolas Bellord. New board member Colin Downes — EMAG’s organiser from the West Midlands — was introduced. The meeting heard from chairman John Newman, followed by a brief talk from Chris Wiscarson, chief executive of Equitable Life — who was well received. It fell to Paul Braithwaite to explain at length the EMAG board’s unanimous decision not to proceed with a Judicial Review against the Government. Paul Weir gave an outline of EMAG’s long-term strategy. The board would like to thank all those EMAG members and activists who attended.
27/01/2011 - The independent Commission reports
Coincidental with the EMAG AGM, the Treasury chose to publish the report of the independent Commission — a week early. Cheques for as little as £10 will be dispatched over the next three years to 950,000 victims — no details available. But that will be at the rate of just one fifth of losses, estimated by the Treasury’s actuaries, Towers Watson, and with no added interest for the wait of up to 13 years.
The Coalition’s brass neck of proposing that a 20% payout is ‘fair’ further devalues this much used word by our politicians. EMAG does not criticise Brian Pomeroy, the Commission’s chairman, or his two colleagues. Their remit was totally emasculated by minister Mark Hoban on 27 October. Its purview is a far cry from the PO’s intention that the Commission establish the true ‘relative loss’, design a compensation scheme that was fair between the classes and oversee its implementation. We have the gross distortion of 10,000 old pensioners callously left out in the cold with nothing, nearly a million victims sharing a derisory small payout and 37,000 annuitants being promised 100% of their losses, to be paid for as long as they shall live. It’s Alice in Wonderland.
Read about and download the Commission’s report.
