Have you been scammed by IG Index???

[Hoggums]

Nice to see IG reading this - maybe they'd like to bung us all a little "thank you" for defending their position :cheesy::whistling

 

[Richard4762]

Its pretty standard that if you don't meet a margin call, your positions will be closed. Admittedly, they could have called you before closing such a large position, but it is your responsibility to keep an eye on your margin!! Did you not think it might be getting close?

Thanks for your comment, I didn't - it was one of those days where the market took off and I had no internet access. My whole point is that they only gave me 15 minutes and then closed all my positions - if they can change their T's and C's at will - then we will all suffer and to me that is really unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

sounds like tough **** to me

and being short s&p june > december 09 is a losing trade anyway so what you moaning about..prolly saved you money!

just looking for a scape goat for a **** trade if you ask me, pathetic.

Thanks for your comment. If Ig can change their T's and C's at will - then we will all suffer in the end. It is unfair contract terms, so hopefully they won't change them and affect your trading.

 

[Richard4762]

My opinion is this is your own stupidity.I only trade with maximum drawdown of 30% of my account. anything above 30% is madness.period

Thank you for your comment - my positions were 5 % of my trading account. The point is if IG can change their T's and C's at will, then we all suffer in the long run.

 

[Richard4762]

Sorry you lost money. Was that 20k?

But two things spring to mind. Firstly a paper loss is still a loss, so assuming the markets you where trading had not moved a huge amount from the time that IG closed you out, could you not have just added money into the account and continue with the trades from that point? The fact that IG made you realise the loss is almost irrelevant, isn't it?

And secondly, if you didn't use so much leverage this would be much less likely to happen. Sounds to me like they where just trying to cover their back.

Not taking sides, just the way it looks to me.

Thank you for your comment. My point was that I had funds available to add, but was only given 15 minutes notice in an email which I didn't see. Ig changed their T's and C's and if allowed to do that at will we will suffer in the long run. It is unfair contract terms and should not be allowed.

 

[Richard4762]

You think that's bad?

I knew someone that witnessed a huge spike down in the Bund on a fat finger, bought as much as he could at near enough the low, sold it not long after on the way back up and absolutely cleaned up.

The market then went right back to where it was at which point the exchange scratched half the trades, cancelling out all longs and leaving the poor **** net short, a hundred or so ticks offside and completely and utterly screwed.

I also saw someone long FTSE Futures and go to close out but the software didn't register the trade as being closed. The person kept clicking frantically and still nothing. Not long after the market rocketed on a surprise rate cut and the person found that not only had they got out when they thought they had but in their persistent clicking of the mouse, had sold a huge amount short. They ended up bankrupt from a software error.

So what is the moral of these stories?

It's a tough game.

Everyone is out to take your money.

No one likes you.

No one's got your back.

It's f*cking brutal.

And it's most certainly not fair.

Just try not to take it personally.

All the best.

Thank you for your comments. I agree in the main, but the whole point is that IG have changed their T's and C's at will and long term we will all suffer. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

I don't see that IG have done anything wrong?

You on the other hand seemed to have done everything wrong,
- No stop loss
- Praying you position will go "back in the black"
- Too much risk for you account size
- Not taking responsibility for the loss/Blaming IG

You were destined to lose mate

Thank you for your comment. I agree with some of your points but the point I was trying to get across was that once in a contract IG should have no right to alter the terms of the contract, and if they can do that at will - we will all end up losers. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

I have to agree with all the others. I don't think that IG have done anything wrong and I don't think they "panicked". It seems to me that they acted quite responsibly in making several attempts to contact about the margin call. It is no good saying you had money in a bank account somewhere and that you could get it to them in 10 days.

The responsible thing to do is to not get into a position where a margin call takes place.

I am no fan of spreadbetting companies and use direct access myself, but really this case is your fault, not that of IG.

Charlton

Thank you for your comments. I agree in the main to some of your points but - they didn't contact me about margin call, they sent me an email that I didn't see as I was on the road and gave me 15 minutes to provide margin. But my main point is that IG have changed their contract terms and being able to do this at will - we will all suffer in the long term. It is not about whose fault it is, it is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

Thank you for your comments. My main point is that IG changed their T's and C's and if they can do that at will then we will all suffer in the long term. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

Perhaps not quit the attitude to have but . . .

Very unlikely

And exactly how are IG supposed to know that?

Flatly don't believe this.

Yup. Did you read the small print? Clearly not.

Sorry to sound harsh, but if you're chucking more than 5 futures around then you're deemed to be a big boy playing grown up rules.

Thank you for your comments and in the main you are right. But my point is that if IG can change their T's and C's at will - then we will all be losers. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

Another one here who has no sympathy. You should have known your account was getting close to margin limits and put some money in to make sure you didn't get the call.

Also - you want your money back?? YOU'D ALREADY LOST IT. Ever heard of mark-to-market? Keeping a negative position open doesn't mean that the loss is theoretical - it's real. As rossini said - you should have put more money in and re-opened all those bad positions if you were determined to keep them running. Sounds to me like you were holding on in hope.

Also a lesson in effective stoploss and money management wouldn't go amiss here.

Thank you for your comments and in the main I totally agree with you, but my main point is that if IG are allowed to change their T's and C's at will then we will all be losers in the long term. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

IG must love advertising on 'ere...:whistling btw, I love the thought of IG "panicking" over 20K...LOL Did you see their latest figures?

Thanks for your comments. You seem to be missing the main point and that is if IG can change their T's and C's at will then every spreadbetter will be a loser. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

I dont like to kick a man when he is down, but have to agree with all the posters above, this is all of your own doing and you haven't got a leg to stand on.

Thank you for your comments. If IG are allowed to alter their T's and C's at will and cancel the contract you already have with them - we all lose, it is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

That made me chuckle too. Go on, latest figures.... (I just know this is gonna make me feel sick!!)

Thank you for your comments. If Ig are allowed to change their T's and C's at will then we all lose. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

This thread reminds me of the "Airplane" movie scene, where we have a string of posters all lining up to beat up this guy with increasingly harsh views.

(although, I agree with the sentiments, expressed so well by Charlton.)

Thank you for your comments. If IG can change their T's and C's at will then we all suffer in the end - it is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

Did IG give you notice that their T&C had changed ? This is the real issue in my view because if they did and you had not realised it then that is an error on your part. However, if they didn't and just made changes without notice then in my view you have a good case.


Paul

Thank you for your comment. Apparently I found out that IG sent an email about their T's and C's (I didn't get one) but the main point is that if IG are allowed to change their T's and C's at will, when we are already in trades - then that is frightening. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

They did. They sent all of their customers an email around January detailing T&C changes. Unfortunately, this guy hasn't got a leg to stand on.

Thank you for your comments. Apparently IG did send changes to their T's and C's by email - not ensuring that all clients received the email (which I didn't) is in my view ridiculous for such a multi million pound company. But the main point is that if Ig can change the T's and C's at will then we will all be losers in the long run. It is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

I am sure that IG are acting within their own Terms and Conditions and that legally speaking, the OP hasn't a leg to stand on. He should have been aware of the change in their T&Cs. I think I was, and I'm not the most observant person around when it comes to corporate bumf.

Having said that, I am slightly more sympathetic to the plight of the OP than most here seem to be, having been margin-called myself a couple of times (for much less I hasten to add). I'm glad I learned the lesson relatively cheaply, although I still need reminding from time to time.

But morally speaking, I wonder if IG were quite as justified? i.e. Was it reasonable to change their T&Cs in such a radical manner? Should it not depend on the type of customer they are dealing with? We clearly have here a customer who has means (since he has always paid up in the past, and was obviously not running a trivial account. I realise that corporations have to be defensive, especially in post-credit-crunch times, but surely there could/should have been some room for manoeuvre in their Terms?


On a purely technical point, Capital Spreads (as explained in the interview posted at http://www.financial-spread-betting.com/ ) order things differently. The margin requirement is established at the start of the trade and will only change if you move the stop. If you don't have enough available funds, you wouldn't be able to move the stop, and therefore running out of margin wouldn't be the problem: you'd be stopped out first. Stops are mandatory, although not guaranteed. According to the interview, they get hardly any margin calls - presumably it can still occur, but apparently, only rarely, apparently well within their risk criteria anyway. As far as I can determine, the white label partners of LCG are the same in this respect. This seems a much better model to me.

Thank you for your comments. The main point of my gripe with IG is that if they are alloweed to change their T's and C's at will - then the whole spreadbetting community lose - it is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

I concur with most of the comments on here,.....UN,..BEE,...FKIN,..LEAVE,..ABLE !!
What is the matter with some folk,..tut,tut
(walking away scratchin' ****, while patting head),..I know,.show off : )

Thank you for your comments. If IG can change their contract terms at will - then we all lose, it is unfair contract terms.

 

[Richard4762]

margin clerks have no soul. i remember watching huge positions being dumped by usa margin clerks at whatever price every day at 7-9pm during the credit panic. the uk margin clerks tend to do it in the hour before the close to make sure they can unload it. it can cause spikes/mini reversals etc.

Thank you for your comments. If allowed to change their T's and C's at will then all the traders will suffer - it is unfair contract terms.