Doctors Gerry Purdy and Sean Bennett lost £75,000 ($125,000) each after an unregulated investment in a Portuguese property scheme developed by Algarve-based golf tourism firm Oceânico, fell apart.
The pair had invested in the high risk scheme on the advice of their IFA Ron Bulless of Solutions Financial Services – an appointed representative of the Tenet network at the time.
They alleged their adviser had misled them about the unregulated nature of the investment and that the advice was “inappropriate and reckless” due to their low attitude to risk.
Solutions, which had given the advice back in 2008, defaulted in 2012, prompting the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) to direct the investors towards Tenet.
But Tenet refused to acknowledge its responsiblity in relation to the advice, saying the adviser had written the investments through an unregulated firm, not Tenet’s AR.
In a letter to Purdy dated 28 January 2014 and seen by Professional Adviser, Tenet wrote: “[Mr Bulless] has confirmed that the investment which you are complaining about was arranged by a non-regulated firm, Solutions Tax and Investment Planning, not SFS”.
The firm added even if the advice was given by SFS, it would still not take responsibility: “Tenet would not be responsible where SFS was acting outside of the authority granted by Tenet, which is the case here.”
Purdy and Bennett said they found Tenet’s response “disturbing” and that the network had “failed in its duty of care” towards them.
“We are bitterly disappointed because we know we’ve been misled and effectively defrauded by our own IFA. It has caused a huge mental stress over the past two years. This man was very dishonest with us and we can demonstrate that,” said Purdy.
They said Tenet, as the principals of SFS until May 2010, “had a duty of care to us to supervise Bulless and did not do so adequately to protect us.”
Tenet said they could not comment on individual cases but had dealt with the matter “in line with our normal procedures”.
Meanwhile, Purdy also called on the Irish government to act on the investors’ behalf, alleging its investment arm, the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) now owns the failed Oceanico scheme and is stopping it from paying back investors.
