In an unusual move, the firm of liquidators for the failed United Security Life Insurance Company Ltd. have slashed their bills by more than 30 percent.

Creditors were told at a meeting yesterday how the liquidators, of accounting firm Ernst & Young, wrote off $100,000 of their $325,000 bill for the liquidation, paying themselves about $225,000 instead.

A spokesman for the firm, contacted after the meeting, said: "We were sensitive to the fact that this was an estate that didn't have a lot of money in it, and we wished to do a good job for the local creditors.

"The firm took a policy decision that we wouldn't bill any more on that. We don't normally take that approach, but this was a local liquidation that I think everybody felt very strongly about. It was a sensitive issue.'' A further $100,000 was paid out in other expenses, including legal fees.

Meanwhile, about $60,000 in cheques to creditors remain unclaimed after a slew of posted cheques were returned to the provisional liquidator as undeliverable. Liquidators don't know all of the mailing addresses of some of the smaller creditors.

A few creditors turned up yesterday to vote to appoint provisional liquidator, Mr. Gil Tucker of Ernst & Young/Kempe & Whittle, the permanent liquidator.

That appointment must now be ratified by the Supreme Court and by Trinidad's High Court through application. No committee of inspection was appointed.

The spokesman said cheques totaling $658,000 would have been sent out at the beginning of March, and the liquidation would not be considered complete until the cheques were cashed.

If the approximately 50 remaining cheques are not claimed within six months, they would be turned over to the Registrar of Companies so that a fund could be established to hold the money in trust.

In all, the provisional liquidator was able to collect about a $1 million, including roughly Cdn$200,000, which had been earning a higher rate of interest. But losses were incurred in the Bermuda dollar value because the money was converted to US dollars after the fall in value of the Canadian dollar.

The decision by the liquidators to pay out the money even before the required meeting of creditors was considered unusual.

But the spokesman said: "We had to have that meeting by law. But we had previously gone to the court and got their permission to pay that dividend on the basis that if everybody attended, this meeting would cost far more and there would be far less left to pay out.

"That's why we did it in that order. It's not usual. Normally, the dividend would be paid further down the road. But we decided to pay it as quickly as we could because it was a question of getting this money out to people who needed it, and, to try to save costs in the long run.'' The cheques have to be cashed before the liquidation is final.

The spokesman said: "If people are expecting a cheque and have not as yet received one, then they should call our office. Some people may not have known that they were declared valid creditors because when we sent them that notification, that letter was also returned because the address had changed I suppose.

"Some life insurance policyholders of United Security may not realise that they are owed money. That's where the problem arises. Throughout the process, more and more letters have come back `Return to Sender'.'' He said not all policyholders are eligible, although life policyholders who made weekly payments most likely will be.