When I took out a Vista policy with Zurich International Life (ZIL) on 1 May 2008 the investment strategy that I chose was 100 per cent Euro Blue Chip Fund (EBCF). On 4 January 2011, I took out a loan against my policy that has led to two problems that I have not been able to resolve.
First, Loan Agreement that I signed, it states “Sufficient funds will be switched to the Guaranteed Accumulation Fund to cover the value of the loan”. The value of the loan was US$40,000; ZIL took an excessive US$62,624.40.
Second, the loan agreement also gave ZIL the right to take my money out of the EBCF and put it into a fund of its choice. It chose the US Guaranteed Fund (USGF)–a conservative fund that yield little return on investment.
I repaid the loan on 12 March 2012. Upon that date, the investment strategy of record should have gone back in force–however, it did not. My money stayed in the USGF. As a result, I have lost substantial return on my investment.
I brought this matter to the attention of ZIL’s CEO Clive Baker. In his response, Mr Baker stated that, upon repayment of the loan, I was obliged to submit a written request to repurchase units in the Euro Blue Chip fund.
I have never changed my investment strategy and the notion that I should have to buy back into a fund (EBCF) that I never left seems absurd. So who is right? Clive Baker and ZIL or me? And if it is me, what can I do about it?
The Board of Directors supports the position of management (see attached). Mediation has been ineffective (see attached). I filed a complaint with the Isle of Man and Swiss regulators. Both indicated that their mandate is enforcing legislation, not consumer protection.
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Everything you mention makes sense to me. When the company switched the accounts to the guaranteed fund the only way to switch it back would be to notify the company, usually with a company allocation form identifying the new allocations. What troubles me is that from what you are saying, there is no notification of the process.
My best guess is there is something in the small print you have which talks about the process but without seeing any of this I cannot directly help (there are no attachments on this venue). I would recommend finding a broker and see if they know what the process is specifically with the company the policy is with.