Saturday, October 18, 2008

Ask for a full refund now

Dear Mr Tan
First, I'd like to THANK and APPLAUD you for being "the voice" of many low/middle-income Singaporeans especially the retirees who have invested large sums of money into high-risk products without realising the consequences.

My reason for writing this is, like these retirees, I am a victim of sorts . When I look into bank's products, my only concern is to invest in 100% CAPITAL GUARANTEED products. When I met up with the Citibank Personal Banker on several occasions, I stressed this primary concern to her. I even elaborated by saying something like "at the end of the tenor, I want 100% of my capital back". However, I was sold the Merrill Lynch Jubilee Series 8 product which had a 100% CAPITAL PROTECTION . I only realised this when I received the prospectus AFTER signing and paying for this investment.

When I brought this up, I received a 3-way telephone call from the PB's head and another person. I related to her my concern and how I was misled into believing that I bought a 100% CAPITAL GUARANTEED product. She assured me that I will get my 100% capital back based on 2 conditions :

1. I have to hold to maturity the principal amount
2. Nothing happens to Merrill Lynch

She said that our conversations are recorded so I should not worry.

REPLY
I advice you to lodge a complaint for mis-selling and to ask for a FULL refund of your money. If the bank does not agree, you should escalate it to Fidrec (www.fidrec.com.sg) or complain to MAS.