Michael Woolliscroft from Newcastle got back £1,200 from Halifax

Mr Woolliscroft had built up a healthy balance in his savings account over a period of time. He approached his local branch and asked for their help in getting a better return. He had recently retired from work due to ill health and any extra income these savings could produce would be a real benefit. The adviser recommended that Mr Woolliscroft placed his money in a Personal Investment Plan for the medium to long term. This would hopefully produce a regular quarterly income which could be used to supplement his income, but the amount of income was not guaranteed and was dependent upon the performance of the markets. The adviser failed to point out that by taking the income from the investment the value of the original capital could go down and Mr Woolliscroft was shocked when he learned that this was happening. He was under the impression that his capital would grow.

Mr Woolliscroft approached us wondering whether we could help. We carried out a thorough and detailed investigation and established that it would have been more appropriate to place his money in a no risk investment. Mr Woolliscroft had always been happy with his savings accounts and was recommended to take risk with his savings, for the first time in his life, in retirement. He clearly stated to the adviser that he could not afford to lose money.

Halifax agreed that the advice Mr Woolliscroft received was inappropriate and awarded him £1,200, made up of a refund of his losses together with interest and compensation.

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