Equity Release Redemption penalty advice needed !

[NVP]

Hi all My mother in law (and late Father in law) took out an Equity release deal with NU (now Aviva) in early 2002hands up....they signed on the dotted line and had good IFA advice (family member who was an IFA) so no complaints there....they wanted to tuck some money away for the future plus pay off a few bills....11 years on she is a widow and wants to downsize from the house - her husband died 5 years ago now and she is lonely + its to big to heat and manage, the stairs are becoming a struggle for her and in truth we would prefer her nearer to us now in a retirement home and in a quieter area (Bromley Kent).we are over an hour away and want her 10 mins away ....Summary the £50k loan is now £118k......cant despute that .....but the redemption penalty clause states its based on the Redemption Gilt yield differential between Jan 2002 and the date of redemption for the UK 2028 6% Treasury bonds ouch ! - current yield is 2.6% vs 4.7% in 2002..........the rules state a 2% differential equates to a 50% penalty on the original loan (thats another £25k on top of the £118k)the IFA family member died a few eyars back and she lost touch with the IFA company then ......so I am writing to Aviva today to request full costs and terms if we do close out the Loan.........it seems they are watertight and I have no way of reducing what seems a rediculous pernaly clause ?I read that in 2004 a (25%) cap was placed on the penalty clauses so could beg for that ........any advice would be greateful.my mother in law is pretty sturdy so we cant claim she HAS to go into care even though she will move to a retirment home ....I spoke to my solicitor but they said we probably wouldnt get any relief at all here .....thanks all in advance Neil

[NVP]

is it that lost a cause ?..............surely I can complain to someone and ask for a review and try to get the redemption capped ?

 

what about websites where I can apply a little guerilla leverage ?..........they surely dont like such stories leaking out as it reduces sales and is bad press ?

 

thanks

N