Banking royal commission: single mother has nothing left to lose

Linda Somers was earning in the top income bracket when her life began to ‘totally unravel’.

Linda Somers, who lost her home in Sydney after the work of a dodgy independent broker, in front of the small unit she now rents at a reduced price because she cares for the owners cat, at Nundah, Brisbane. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

Linda Somers was earning good money after being headhunted for a senior role when her life began to “totally unravel”.

As a single mother living with her 15-year-old son in Sydney’s Abbotsford, in 2009 the senior ­account manager was advised by insurance company Asteron Life — a member of Suncorp group that offered its services to employees in her company — to take out involuntary redundancy insurance.

She was told that by bundling the insurance with several life insurance policies she had, and giving Asteron control of her super, it would be beneficial to her when claiming tax returns.

“I took out the highest levels of life and involuntary redundancy insurance. It was so expensive, but I was the sole carer for my son,” Ms Somers said.

She would later discover that the insurance contract had been fraudulently signed, with the signature witness listed an employee of Asteron based in Melbourne despite Ms Somers having signed the document in her Sydney office.

However, Ms Somers said she first became suspicious of Asteron Life when the company began taking out two payments each month.

The Australian has seen bank statements and insurance contracts that support Ms Somers’s claims. “I asked them why I was paying double and they kept disputing the reason or that it was even happening. But I was just so busy at work, I continued paying. It was close to $600 a month.”

It was in early 2011, after being made redundant when the company where she had worked for five years went into receivership, that Ms Somers attempted to make a claim on her involuntary redundancy policy. “They tried to tell me they never provided that type of insurance, despite it being the sole purpose of me agreeing to the policy and paying the level of protection I did.”

When lodging a complaint over her claim rejection, Ms Somers was told there was “no further ­avenue” to take her matter to.

“When I took the complaint to the watchdog, they simply told me that Asteron didn’t offer that type of insurance.”

Despite being unemployed, Ms Somers said consultants at Asteron pressured her to continue paying for her insurance bundle.

When Ms Somers responded that she couldn’t afford the payments, she said she was advised to begin selling her assets — which included three investment properties in Sydney — to continue paying for her cover.

“At the end of the day it was about my son. He was my sole responsibility, so I didn’t think about cancelling my life insurance. They also charged about $300 a week in super fees, it was ridiculous. I watched my years of work disappear with each statement”.

By 2013, years of insurance payments and super payments had eaten away her savings, properties and vehicles.

Ms Somers and her son were forced into a state of “semi-homelessness” three weeks after his HSC exams, a state they remain in to this day.

Ms Somers is continuing to ­attempt to resolve her issue with Asteron. She spoke to The Australian from a home she was house sitting at in Brisbane. “My son moved interstate to escape this. All of our possessions are in storage in Sydney. We have roofs over our head, but I have no home. We have nothing left to lose.”