EQUITABLE LIFE MEMBERS

EQUITABLE SUFFERERS RISE AGAIN

Last Updated: Monday, February 23, 2004 04:36 PM

Our THIRD Equitable Life Sufferers Protest meeting will be held at The Assembly House, Theatre St., Norwich on Tuesday, 16th. March at 11.00 a.m.

We ask all our existing supporters to come. There is a lot to discuss. There will be great emphasis on With Profits Annuitants who remain trapped in Equitable and now understand how vicious their pension cuts have been and will continue to be. They are milch-cows financing other parts of Equitable, which refuses to let them leave.

There is a real chance of legal action at an economic rate for a small number of With Profits Annuitants. Messrs. Clarke Willmott, respected solicitors of Bristol, have made a study of the Equitable scandal and are suing on behalf of several clients, having already succeeded in some claims. Their partner Robert Morfee has agreed to come and talk shortly about this. We must all think very carefully about the implications of this.

We repeat our question last year. Why save for a pension if your retirement is not safe? We all know now just how bad is the future of Equitable With Profits Annuitants. Who will think it worthwhile to save for a pension? There is nowhere safe to put your money. The Government should realise that an election is coming and that they have badly affected the future of a million voters caught by the Equitable scandal.

The Government pretends to regulate the insurance companies. It has fallen down on the job and is now trying to walk away. The Treasury is still dithering about publishing Lord Penrose's enquiry into the Equitable affair, though they have referred parts of it to the Serious Fraud Office.

The Penrose Report just might be out by the day of our meeting. Even without it there will be many topics to discuss.

Both old and new supporters can help us greatly as organisers by telephoning one of us between 4.30 and 6.30 any day at one of the numbers below to tell us you hope to come. It will help us if you can do this before 27 February if possible.

Last year our January meeting attracted 170 people even during a blizzard.  We hope for even more interest this year. There will be no Big Name speakers this time – just some hard-headed discussion led by David who will chair the meeting, with Nicholas on hand to comment on the legal aspects of the scandal.

Yours sincerely

David Ward (Cringleford) 01603 452330

Nicholas Oglethorpe (Eaton) 01603 454210