Endowment selling in 2009 has been one route that the British public have taken to try and make ends meet in the current economic climate. The forecast for the number of people selling endowments in 2010 is said to be no different, and there is even talk of this continuing into 2011.

The life companies are applying market value adjustment factors to those policy holders looking to cash in or surrender their with profits endowment policies, which is simply jargon for "withholding some of the policies value" as a penalty for coming out of the endowment fund early.

The practice is said to applied in order to protect the remaining endowment policy holders that decide to stay in the fund and see it through to their individual maturity dates.

With reduced yields for surrendering endowment policies, its not surprising that a number of endowment policy holders are choosing to go down the road of selling endowments instead of cashing them in.

Selling endowments is an easy process, once the information needed is gathered together, as the endowment market makers do most of the work for you.

The process revolves around the selling endowments form which can be found from this link.

"For Endowment Sales, use The Endowment Market Place."

Stopping, surrendering, cashing in or selling an endowment policy should only be looked upon as a last resort, but if after taking independent financial advice the policy holder is determined to proceed, then alternative life cover should also be considered to replace the life insurance that will be lost to the policy holder when the endowment has changed hands.

Note: the policy holders life assurance will still be in force, but the new owner of the policy will be the one who collects on it, if the original policy holder dies before the endowment policy matures.

Selling endowments

Selling endowments to one of only six endowment policy traders that are  members of the Association of Policy Market Makers, can be achieved by using the "sell endowment" link at the top of the page, or by clicking here

The information on this web site is intended as "information only" and should not be taken as "advice".

If you are unsure about what to do, if anything, about your endowment policy, you should consider taking advice from an independent financial adviser who is regulated by the Financial Services Authority