Britain's largest mutual life insurance group, Standard Life, said yesterday it had rejected a members' requisition for a meeting to vote on demutualisation.

Earlier this month, a group of Standard Life members, calling themselves the Standard Life Members' Action Group, had pushed for a vote on conversion to a public company, in a move which - valuing Standard Life at £12£15 billion ($19$24 billion) - could have triggered cash windfalls of between £5,000 and £6,300 sterling per member. Approximately 150,000 Standard Life with-profits policies are held in the Republic.

Standard Life said the requisition was invalid because it was not possible for members to direct the board to carry out any particular action by an ordinary resolution.

"Standard Life has received advice from its legal advisers and from leading counsel that the resolution which has been presented seeks to direct the board and is therefore not a proper resolution to be put to the company in a general meeting," the group said.

The group has already introduced measures to deter potential carpetbaggers, including barring applicants for new policies from getting any windfalls from a demutualisation within three years of their policies being taken out.

A succession of demutualisations by UK building societies and life assurers over the past few years, bringing billions of pounds in cash payouts to members, has prompted attempts to push remaining mutuals to convert.

The Standard Life Members' Action Group said it noted the company's decision, but that Standard Life was "mistaken" in dismissing the wishes of its membership.

The group said it would make a further statement about its intentions in the near future.