Wills & Co misselling claims to fall on IFAs
Share
Misselling claims against Wills & Co Stockbrokers are poised to fall onto advisers after the Financial Services Compensation Scheme today confirmed the firm is in default.
In February, the FSA confirmed it had stopped Wills & Co from giving investment advice and the firm began winding down and transferring customers to other firms. In March, the FSA lodged a petition for the winding up of Wills & Co in the High Court.
The FSCS says it is working with Wills & Co directors and the Financial Ombudsman Service to ensure all complaints made against the firm are transferred to the scheme along with all relevant company records, after concluding the firm is unable, or likely to be unable, to pay claims.
Once it has received the complaint files, the FSCS will send out application forms to customers to enable them to apply for compensation.
Stockbrokers come under the same FSCS sub-class as IFAs, meaning advisers will have to share the burden of any claims relating to Wills & Co.
FSCS chief executive Mark Neale says: “We are working hard to ensure that we can start to process claims against this firm as soon as possible. Once we have received the complaint files that are currently held by the firm and the FOS, we will be contacting these customers with details of the claims process and an application form to complete.
“We do not charge consumers for using our service, and we have made the claims process as straightforward as possible, so that customers of the firm should not need to use legal or financial advisers when making a claim.”
If you enjoyed this article, sign up here to receive daily email updates from Money Marketing and Follow @_moneymarketing
Readers' comments (5)
Anonymous | 1 Jul 2010 2:45 pm
Here we go again IFA's picking up the bill for a stockbroker. Why doesn't the FSCS start taking action on the directors/partners personally and make them pay the compensation.Why should we have to bail out all these companies willy nilly. Maybe we should all go bust and see what happens then!!!!
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 2 Jul 2010 8:24 am
I am not authorised to give advice on shares and yet I am expected to pick up the bill for them. Its like asking Ford to compensate Honda clients.
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Anonymous | 2 Jul 2010 1:41 pm
I think we should be sued for the fact that England are out of the world cup - it must be our fault
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Gareth Fatchett | 4 Jul 2010 8:04 pm
Keydata
Wills & Co
Lifemark
SLS
......
When do IFA's fight back ?
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment
Paul Nash | 7 Jul 2010 2:23 pm
Reference to the previous posting by G Fatchett, I was unaware there was a levy for victims of Lifemark? Or that the FSCS had agreed to compensate them?
Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment