Equitable Life

The £1.5bn that the government has put on the table to settle the long-running Equitable Life saga is a good deal.

The government is expected to announce this week it will treble proposed compensation payouts to Equitable Life policyholders to £1.5bn.

Levels of knowledge about state pension entitlements are "limited" and "incomplete" among those who will rely solely or mostly on the government for retirement income, according to a DWP report.

Equitable Life is maintaining an interim bonus of 3.5% per annum for policyholders after announcing its solvency ratio had improved.

Financial secretary Mark Hoban has pointed the finger of blame at the Labour government for the scale of payments owed to Equitable Life policyholders following the insurer's near collapse 10 years ago.

Victims of Equitable Life's near collapse have been told by the company's CEO they should accept a government payout of half that recommended by officials.

Coalition MPs have been accused of sending duplicated letters to victims of the Equitable Life scandal, amid expectations of small payouts.

Equitable Life has called on the Government to honour the Ombudsman's recommendation to make fair payments to policyholders.

Our first post-war coalition Government has now lasted 100 days; not a great achievement in itself but a convenient moment at which to pause and consider its impact on the financial services sector.

Parliamentary ombudsman Ann Abraham has rejected the Government's proposed compensation plan for those who lost money with Equitable Life.