Help me solve six-year repo impasse

I was shocked to receive a letter from UCB Home Loan chasing a mortgage debt from a property I vacated in 1991 which was subsequently repossessed and sold in December 1992. The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has said that from February this year lenders would not pursue debts if contact had not been made within six years of the sale.

UCB said the six years dates from the last contact, and they had contacted me in 1995. I deny receiving a letter, but UCB says it does not have to abide by the CML agreement. I've asked for information but they just chase me for the money.
SK, South Ockendon

Lenders have agreed to start recovery action within six years of repossessed property being sold; before they could have waited 12. UCB admits its letter was wrong, but the company claims it complies with the six-year limit because it started trying to recover the money through a tracing agency in 1994.

It is adamant that the tracing agency hand-delivered letters to an address where it believed you would receive them. It posted two more letters to the same address in 1995 but then waited until earlier this year to try again, when the tracing agency found your current address.

It is obviously a shock to be asked to repay so much so long after you left the property but you have reached an impasse. You could negotiate with UCB, which may be willing to agree a reduced sum. Or you could take your case to the Ombudsman (0845 7660902), who can investigate whether UCB handled properly the mechanics of debt recovery.'

Travel policies: I was robbed


On my way home from Argentina I was robbed at Buenos Aires Airport.

I claimed £1,621 on my Airmiles policy, run by Axa, but the amount paid out was £861. Airmiles points to limits on each section of the policy such as 'up to £500' for money, but this is different from the advertising leaflet that tempted me to buy the insurance, which says I can claim '£500'.
MD, Preston

Obviously, if you lost £50 cash you would not expect an insurer to pay you £500, and the insurer argues that you cannot expect to have the whole picture in a 'summary of cover'. But this clearly says 'Personal Money £500' or 'up to £500'. The small print, under Personal Money and Documents, says the most Axa will pay is £500, although further down, it says the maximum for bank notes, currency notes and coins is £200. Even if they read the small print, not everyone would realise that this dilutes the £500.

After looking closely at the documents, Axa agrees the wording of the advertising brochure and policy could be confusing and the underwriters are making future policies clearer.

Civil service: Widows pique


You wrote recently that members of the Civil Service AVC scheme benefited from the transfer of Scottish Widows to TSB. I did not.
JMcN, Edinburgh

Your situation is different from people who are contributing to the Civil Service AVC; you had already retired in 22 June 1999, the cut-off date for payments. You now have a Scottish Widows annuity, but this is not a with-profits version, and so not entitled to a payout.

Pension plus: Tax relief's not all


Can I invest in a stakeholder pension to take advantage of the tax relief? I will be 65 in a few months and am already receiving a company pension but have no other source of income. Can I use the 'carry-back' provisions which will be abolished in April?
LD, Maidenhead

You can put up to £3,600 a year into a stakeholder pension because, now you are drawing your pension, you are not a member of an occupational scheme.

You will get tax relief on stakeholder contributions, which can continue until you are 75, but don't be tempted by tax relief alone. Once you draw a stakeholder pension you have to buy an annuity with the proceeds. Annuity rates are low and likely to stay that way for some years yet. If you bought an Isa, there is no tax relief on the way in but you pay no tax on withdrawals and the money is not locked away.

You cannot use the 'carry back' or 'carry forward' facilities.

'They disappear as stakeholder pensions arrive, so you would have to buy a personal pension this tax year. You cannot do this because you have no earned income.

• Write to Margaret Dibben, The Observer, 119 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3ER and include a telephone number. Do not enclose SAEs or original documents. Letters are selected for publication and we cannot give personal replies. The newspaper accepts no legal responsibility for advice.