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General Information
All policyholders are automatically entitled to Global Benefits
and need not do anything at all if they are content to receive only Global Benefits.
All policyholders ought to check page 2 of the London Life
mailing package, specifically the Policy Information Statement, to determine
whether or not they automatically qualify for Enhanced Benefits.
If you qualify for Enhanced Benefits, you need not do anything
at all if you are content to receive Global and Enhanced Benefits.
If you do not qualify for Enhanced Benefits, you can make
an application for them, or you can make an Individual Claim Review Process (ICRP)
claim, but not both.
If you automatically qualify for Enhanced Benefits as indicated
on the Policy Information Statement on page 2 of the London Life mailing package,
you can make an ICRP claim with low-risk in most cases of losing anything, and
the possibility of better, more favourable relief.
Choosing Between an Application for Enhanced Benefits and
an ICRP Claim
This applies to policyholders who do not automatically qualify
for Enhanced Benefits, which means there is no positive Representative Report.
A Representative Report was an internal London Life form generally
completed by the sales agent/representative at the time of purchase which, starting
in 1985, included a question about premium offset. The London Life sales agent/representative
would generally complete the report after selling a policy. From 1985 on, the
report had questions for the sales agent/representative as to whether or not
the future use of premium offset was a factor in the purchase of the policy by
the policyholder.
You can apply for Enhanced Benefits but if you do so, cannot
make an ICRP claim.
The Enhanced Benefits relief deals specifically with premium
offset and not directly with policy value claims or income benefit Pay Day claims.
If you have a policy value or income benefit Pay Day complaint,
those complaints are more properly dealt with under the ICRP than under Enhanced
Benefits relief.
There are three types of individual claims:
1. Premium Offset claims -- claims
based on a representation of a guaranteed premium offset date.
Example: The agent said at point of purchase of the policy
that the policyholder would only have to make premium payments for a period of
10 years, following which no further premium payments would be required to be
made.
2. Pay Day claims -- claims based
on a representation of a guaranteed annual income for some period of time and,
where applicable, a guaranteed premium offset date.
Example: The agent said at point of purchase of the policy
that the policy would eventually generate a specified annual income amount (say
$2,500.00) and in some instances, a guaranteed premium offset date -- a representation
that premium payments would be required to be made only for a fixed specified
number of years (say 10 years) after which no further premium payments would
be required to be made.
3. Cash Value claims -- claims
based on a representation of a guaranteed cash value at a specified point in
time.
Example: The agent said at point of purchase of the policy
that the policy would in 20 years have a guaranteed cash value of say $100,000.00
which could be accessed for purposes of retirement, etc.
If you have strong ICRP evidence, i.e., written proof from
the sales agent/representative of the premium offset date promised at point of
purchase of your policy, you ought to make an ICRP claim. Written proof would
consist of an altered sales illustration with alterations having been made by
the sales agent/representative or letters/notes from the agent.
If your sales agent/representative is prepared to execute
a sworn statement confirming the alleged misrepresentations made at point of
purchase of your policy, you ought to make an ICRP claim.
If you have this type of proof, you will likely qualify for
relief which will honour the representations made at point of purchase of your
policy, i.e., if you were promised that you would have to pay premiums for only
10 years, you will achieve that premium offset date and will receive a rebate
of premiums overpaid.
If you do not have strong ICRP evidence of the type referred
to above, you ought to consider an application for Enhanced Benefits.
Application for Enhanced Benefits
To apply for Enhanced Benefits, where you do not automatically
qualify for same as indicated on the Policy Information Statement on page 2 of
the London Life mailing package, you must check off Option 2 on the Election
Form and complete the Application for Enhanced Benefits as well.
>Applications are assessed based on the information provided
in the completed application and the criteria for qualification.
In completing the Application for Enhanced Benefits, you ought
to indicate that premium offset was a significant factor in the purchase of your
policy if that is in fact the case. You will answer question 1 on the Application
for Enhanced Benefits form by checking the "YES" box.
If you have supporting documentation from the time of purchase
of your policy, you will answer question 2 by checking the "YES" box
as well.
The supporting documentation can include (but is not limited to):
a) a sales illustration of the policy prepared by London Life
at the time of purchase, which illustrates premium offset; or
b) a letter or notes from the London Life sales agent/representative
who sold you the policy, written at the time of purchase of the policy, which
indicates that premium offset applies to the policy.
The supporting documentation ought to be attached to the Application
for Enhanced Benefits form and submitted to London Life. You ought to retain
copies.
If you have supporting documentation and answered question
2 on the Application for Enhanced Benefits form by checking the "YES" box,
you need not have the Application form sworn in the presence of a commissioner
for oaths, notary public or lawyer. You simply sign the document and return it
to London Life.
The Application for Enhanced Benefits need be sworn before
a commissioner for oaths, notary public or lawyer only if you do not have documents
from the time you purchased the policy that support that premium offset was a
significant factor in the purchase of the policy (i.e., you answered question
2 on the Application by checking the "NO" box).
If you have no supporting documentation, you must attend before
a commissioner for oaths, notary public or lawyer and have the document signed
and sworn. You will qualify for Enhanced Benefits unless premium offset could
not have been illustrated for your specific policy or there is in the London
Life file a Representative Report that expressly indicates the policy was not
sold to you based on the future use of premium offset.
For policies purchased to 1985, there will not be a Representative
Report indicating that the policy was not sold based on the future use of premium
offset since the Representative Report form with a question about premium offset
was not used prior to 1985.
In all cases you should retain copies of relevant documentation
for yourself. You should keep a copy of anything you send to London Life including
your sales illustration or other supporting documentation.
Applying for ICRP Relief and Receiving Enhanced Benefits
Automatically
This applies to policyholders who automatically qualify for
Enhanced Benefits as indicated on the Policy Information Statement on page 2
of the London Life mailing package.
A policyholder content with the Global and Enhanced Benefits
need not do anything at all. No forms need to be completed and returned.
There is a slight risk that a completely unsuccessful ICRP
claim will result in a policyholder losing automatic entitlement to Enhanced
Benefits, however, we believe that the risk is low in most circumstances.
Enhanced Benefits deal with complaints/concerns relating to
premium offset only, i.e., the relief decreases the premium offset period, but
does not in any way address other complaints/concerns relating to cash values
or Pay Day.
In ICRP claim ought to be pursued if you have strong proof
of the misrepresentations alleged to have been made by the sales agent/representative
at the time you purchased your policy.
If participating in the ICRP, you ought to request the last
known address for the London Life sales agent/representative that you dealt with
and ought to at least attempt to contact that sales agent/representative with
a view to obtaining a statement.
You ought to complete the request form for the last known
address of the London Life sales agent/representative, which form is on the back
of the Election Form.
If participating in the ICRP, you also have an opportunity
to ask London Life to provide copies of documents from your policy file. That
request is made after the ICRP package is sent to you. Note that the request
for documents has to be made within 10 days of you receiving the Claim Adjudication
Package (ICRP).
We recommend that all policyholders request copies of documentation
from the London Life policyholder file in connection with ICRP claims.
CONTACT US
If you would like more information regarding this claim
or wish to be added to our database of claimants, you may e-mail us at manager@classactionlaw.ca.
You can also access our class action hotline at 1-905-523-8048.
You can contact us directly by telephone at Scarfone Hawkins LLP
at 1-905-523-1333.
You can contact us by fax at 1-905-523-5878.
We are experiencing an extremely large volume of calls.
We will return your call as soon as possible. We would ask that you please be
patient. Thank you. |
