How to make a complaint about your insurance

Monday, January 05, 2009

Step 1: Contact the firm and, if necessary, use the firm's formal complaints procedure.

You must first give the firm involved a chance to put things right. Ask for details of of the formal complaints procedure - most financial firms have one and will tell you how to use it.

• Contacting the firm first makes sense. They can easily check their records to see what has happened and they are best placed to put matters right.

• If you can, contact the person you originally dealt with. They should be familiar with your case. They may immediately agree that you have a valid complaint. Or they may be able to clear up any misunderstanding.

• If you're not happy with how the firm is dealing with your problem, take your case to the chief executive or whoever is the most senior person in the organisation.

• Check the firm's literature, or your public library, for the chief executive's name.

• Send a copy of your complaint to the firm's compliance officer too - most financial firms should have one. This is someone employed by the firm to make sure it keeps to the law and to any other rules.

• If the firm is no longer trading, call the Consumer Contact Centre on 0845 606 1234 for advice on what to do next.

Step 2: Go to an independent complaints scheme - if the matter cannot be resolved with the firm.


Insurance and your rights