Promises, not Promises

The company is writing to 600,000 customers telling them it will cease paying out the full amount on guaranteed mortgage endowments after 31 December, 2005. A pot worth £393m has been set aside to cover 100% payouts until that date, affecting some 36,000 policyholders, according to company figures. That leaves some 564,000 policyholders who could see the so-called “Promise” on their endowment slashed to just 40% to 60% of previous expectations. Splitting the £393m exactly between the total number affected is not easily done, Standard Life says, because of factors such as early leav...