Most people surrender their endowment policies rather then sell them on to a third party because the...
Most people surrender their endowment policies rather then sell them on to a third party because they are not aware this option exists.
A survey conducted by the traded endowment policy (TEP) purchaser Surrenda-link, into regional variations in attitudes to endowment policies, showed that only 1% of policyholders who have held a policy in the last 10 years sold it on to a TEP provider. This was largely down to lack of awareness, the survey found.
In Scotland, 43% of respondents had surrendered their policy with none selling them on to a TEP company. 94% of policyholders in East Anglia, where concerns over policies not meeting their targets were the highest, were unaware of the option to sell, followed by 86% of those in the East Midlands.
Commenting on the findings, Matthew Roche, marketing manager at Surrenda-link, said: "The overwhelming message from this survey is that too few endowment holders are aware of the option to sell to a third party rather than surrender.
"As endowment mortgage credibility drops and concern over maturation targets increases, many holders will be reassessing their options.
"Their lack of awareness of the ability to sell to a third party could mean that they lose out on extra money should they choose to cash in their policies - an average of £1,700 per person based on policies sold to Surrenda-link."
He added: "There is still plenty of opportunity for endowment holders across the UK who are considering disposing of an endowment policy to realise a higher value by selling rather than surrendering."
