"Equitable Life's increase in pension payouts is a step in the right direction" - Sharon Bowles MEP (Bexhill and Battle Liberal Democrats)

Bexhill and Battle Liberal Democrats <info@bexhillandbattlelibdems.org.uk>

"Equitable Life's increase in pension payouts is a step in the right direction" - Sharon Bowles MEP

March 29, 2011 9:39 AM
Originally published by Sharon Bowles MEP

Equitable Life announced yesterday that 400,000 of its current policyholders are to get an increase to their future pension payouts.

According to Equitable Life those who start drawing their pensions from 1st April will get a 12.5% rise in the payments they receive on retiring.

The world's oldest mutual insurer, Equitable Life faced near-collapse in 2000 after making promises it could not afford to keep.

As a result, policyholders were subjected to large cuts to the value of either their prospective or current pensions.

According to Equitable Members Action Group (EMAG), 15 Equitable Life victims die each day in the UK, many in poverty.

Sharon Bowles MEP helped Equitable petitioners to obtain an independent inquiry in the European Parliament to investigate Equitable's activities and has campaigned with EMAG since before becoming a Member of the European Parliament in 2005.

Said Sharon:

"The Equitable Life scandal cast a shadow over the last decade and left a lot of people in poverty and despair, many of whom I have met personally.

"The Equitable Life Bill, announced in the Queen's Speech last year, made compensation denied to victims by the previous government a reality.

"Yesterday's announcement marks another page turned in the fortunes of Equitable Life and its customers and I am glad to see that progress is being made."

ENDS