You've got the right to complain if you've been mis-sold your endowment, but you're not permitted to complain if your endowment hasn't performed as well as expected.

Initially, you've got to complain to the company you bought that endowment from in the first place - and it's got to be done in writing.

You'll need to quote all your policy and reference numbers, list all events in the order they occurred and enclose copies - never originals - of all relevant documentation.

Should you find yourself talking on the phone, make a note of who you've been talking to and how the conversation went.

Follow up that conversation with a letter confirming what you've said.

The company has eight weeks to act after you've written your original letter of complaint, sometimes more - but they should inform you if they've been given extra time because they're dealing with so many complaints.

If, after this time, your complaint hasn't been dealt with to your satisfaction, you can go direct to the ombudsman.

You won't get compensated for the amount your endowment falls short of the projections made when you bought it, but you should have enough compensation to put you in the position you'd be in if you'd taken out a repayment mortgage.