Dozens of policyholders - including many seniors -lined up for hours yesterday at British American Insurance to get long-awaited payouts from the now defunct company.As they queued, an eight-page detailed letter on the company’s collapse was handed out demanding an independent investigation into why winding-up proceedings weren’t initiated against British American earlier, and why it’s taken more than two years for policyholders to get back any of their money.Policyholders can collect their cheques any time this week from 9am to 4pm, but none appeared willing to risk waiting any longer for the money they’re owed. A policyholder told us many people went straight to the banks afterward to cash their cheques.The queues stretched past Casual Living at one point, and once inside a crush of people filled two small rooms inside British American as staff processed payments.Some 3,800 policyholders paid as much as $100,000-plus each to British American over periods of 10 to more than 20 years, before the branch folded in 2009.Policyholders were to get a first partial payout on 35 percent of their claims.Many retirees were in the long line, causing another policy holder we spoke with to criticise the payment process.“The fact that seniors have been standing on their feet in this line for over two hours is sickening,” said the policy holder, who waited outside for an hour before getting through the doors to be processed.“I think they should have selected another venue, like a large hall. It was jam-packed inside. And some people got angry when KPMG came out and suggested we could come back later. There was a fear if you didn’t get your cheque and cash it today something would happen to it.”But Mike Morrison of the liquidator’s agents, KPMG Advisory Ltd, stressed policyholders have all week to collect their cheques.“We understand that certain creditors believe that cheques must be collected today,” Mr Morrison said yesterday. “That is not the case. Creditors should note that the offices are open through Christmas and into the New Year save of course for public holidays. Creditors can collect their cheques at any time when the office is open from today and through into the New Year.”He added: “It is very busy, but people generally appear to be in good spirits and we have made more staff available to assist with the process. As we verify the identity of the people who are at the office their cheques are being issued. We are grateful to creditors for their patience and good spirits while they work with staff to complete the process required to obtain their cheque.”However, another policyholder, a senior citizen, said she waited on her feet two hours and it was “not very organised”.“I’m not happy. They could have rented out Cathedral Hall or something,” she said. “I got my payout but it’s 35 percent of what? That’s what I can’t get from them.”The senior said she had three policies, including one she had paid into for 21 years.Stephen Lowe, the Official Receiver, has explained partial payouts were being made because negotiations with a buyer for the British American building had not yet been concluded. It was decided an interim dividend should be paid to creditors.He said the second and final distribution of the balance would be paid on completion of the sale of the building and when the proceeds of the sale have been received.Any cheque not collected will be sent by mail to the last known address of the creditor.* An anonymous letter writer levelled several allegations in the letter handed out to policyholders yesterday, and also questioned the qualifications of certain staff who had worked at the company before its collapse. The writer also claimed many policyholders were referrals from the Bermuda Small Business Development Corporation via a partnership with British American at the time.The letter writer, who appeared to have internal knowledge of circumstances before and after the company’s collapse, questioned KPMG’s handling of the process accusing it of showing “disregard” for policyholders and former staff of the company.The writer charged that British American should be investigated and that regulators were not happy with the company for “some time” before it folded.The letter writer demanded: “There needs to be a formal investigation into the company and the disastrous events leading up to it being deemed insolvent...How else can the public be assured this will not happen again?”The writer claimed some people got tipped off of the company’s problems and were lucky enough to cash in their policies in early 2009.The letter writer further claimed, “There are many people out there who have no idea that they are owed money from British American…There were endowment policies take out years ago, many times for a child…”Mr Morrison said he had not seen the letter but once he does, would review it with Mr Lowe and respond as appropriate.