Not upheld: Restriction on asset sale / access to funds due to auto-disinvestment process complaint against Phoenix Life Limited trading as Standard Life Assurance Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr M complained that he was unable to sell the remaining 50% of his SIPP units on 7 April 2025 as requested, resulting in a financial loss when the units were sold the following day at a lower price. PL explained that an auto-disinvestment process was already in progress to cover the monthly platform charge, which prevented new trades from being initiated. The ombudsman found that PL's terms and conditions explicitly permitted auto-disinvestment when the cash account balance was insufficient to cover charges, and that the cash account had a zero balance when the charge became due. The ombudsman was satisfied that the FA was aware of the auto-disinvestment process and understood it needed to complete before further trades could be processed. The complaint was not upheld as PL had acted in accordance with its terms and conditions.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that PL's actions were consistent with its terms and conditions, which Mr M had agreed to when opening the account. The cash account had a zero balance when the monthly platform charge became due on or around 5 April 2025, triggering an automatic disinvestment process on 6 April 2025. The terms and conditions explicitly permitted PL to sell assets to cover charges when the cash account was insufficient. The FA was aware of the auto-disinvestment process and understood it needed to complete before further trades could be processed. The restriction on trading while the auto-disinvestment was in progress was a reasonable safeguard to prevent clients from selling more units than they held. The sale instruction was actioned correctly once the auto-disinvestment completed on 8 April 2025.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website