The chairman of Equitable Life has apologised to policyholders as they meet to vote on a last ditch rescue plan aimed at closing a massive funding gap at Britain's oldest mutual life assurer.
Mr Vanni Treves was forced to make a public apology after the 240-year old society was brought to its knees by offering guaranteed returns on pensions it later found it could not afford.
He said a "yes" vote on a compromise deal that would cap future liabilities was the best way to ensure Equitable's survival, mindful that a collapse would threaten the life savings of more than one million Britons.
However, even if the rescue plan gets the thumbs up as expected - the result will not be known until the end of the month - Equitable's problems could be far from over.
Some policyholders say they will take the extra money they will be entitled to under the plan and switch to better-performing funds.
The stricken society lost a legal battle over guaranteed pension policies which were sold in the 1970s and 1980s when interest rates and investment returns were far higher than they are now. It faced a massive funding shortfall as the guaranteed annuity rates had become too expensive to honour.
The compromise deal needs the support of at least 50 per cent of policyholders by number and 75 per cent by value, which Mr Treves has described as a "difficult obstacle."
Many customers have already defected to rival insurers like Prudential and mutually-owned Standard Life, as investors seek stable and higher returns elsewhere in the sector.
The total value of Equitable's fund has already shrunk to £20 billion sterling from around £32 billion in 1999.