AMPS woes of 2000 may be part of today's troubles
AMPs many customers who were advised into products in 2000 may have contributed to the current loss of customer confidence in AMP but now AMP are spinning that they are being benevolent protecting their investors.
Joint founder of EUFA and EX AMP client Jim McSoriley, who has taken a public stance against AMP, said from Wellington this morning “I wish AMP had showed the same benevolence to us when their Henderson products were in trouble and they lost all we had”.
The McSorileys continue to seek accountability for AMPs practices but with out funds to fight have had to use the court of public opinion.
Finance Spokesman for EUFA, Gray Eatwell, said this morning “AMP is as deceitful as any other company that EUFA has experienced, by hiding behind the big company name, to lull investors into a false sense of security while their investment practices have been no different to any other.”
EUFA was founded on the McSorileys case in their dealings with an AMP financial Advisor who was a trusted Insurance agent of theirs for many years. Late in 2000 the McSorileys had sold their home and couldn’t find another home to purchase and thought it prudent to get financial advice on where was the best place to put their house money. Instead of financial advice they were sold high risk AMP products. The very bad performance of these high risk products and the cause and effect of the advice, has been devastating to the McSoriley s who now have to rent a home in their retirement years.
Reportedly AMP advisors held Road Shows for their Advisors around New Zealand in 2000 promoting the Henderson funds. This fund was a disastrous investment which was sold to the McSorileys as a positive option for their house funds. Over 60 AMP clients were put into this product by the McSorileys AMP advisor. With this group of customers, confidence in AMP began to slide. Like many of the finance companies, AMPs advertising is bold to combat lack of customer confidence as referrals dry up.
Coordinator of EUFA, Suzanne Edmonds said from Auckland this morning: “If one Advisor sold to 60 Clients and one multiplies the number of AMP advisors who would have achieved personal reward for pushing the product, there will be a huge amount of clients who suffered loss. The AMP brand is victim to their own actions .......................we just have to do our maths - sixty times one advisor multiplied by a large number of AMP advisors would suggest many AMP clients suffered from a sales push. Those losses have been ignored by AMP, which any public relations officer would know is not a way to build customer confidence and referral. The only action these victims have is to move away from the company who fails to look after them.
With large Businesses like AMP and ING, freezing for liquidity purposes, New Zealand investors must demand that compliance bodies investigate these freezes and ensure investors that these companies are not taking advantage of the current financial collapses, at the expense of the investor, by using the investor to protect themselves.
The Company Trustees, Directors and Shareholders have a duty of care to protect the investors. Company funds should be returned to investors before the profits are taken.
Co-founder of EUFA , Jim McSoriley said from Wellington this morning “This demise from AMP does not surprise me as AMP have a very draconian attitude to customers who stand up to them to seek accountability and I suspect customer confidence has been on a down hill slide since 2000 when they took people like us for mugs” .... He Added. AMPs latest spin to protect investor funds is a front - I know as they didn’t protect ours.