Guidance on non-disclosure halves Ombudsman claims

The ABI has claimed that its insurance claims guidance has halved long-term protection complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) since it was introduced in January 2008.

The guidance - covering claims where customers had unintentionally failed to disclose medical and other information – will be upgraded to a code of conduct that members must follow. All protection will now be covered.

FOS figures show that disputed protection claims fell from 85 in first quarter of 2008 to 40 cases in the last quarter of the year.

Stephen Haddrill, the ABI’s Director General, said: “We're delighted that this initiative has worked so well and complaints have halved. The inclusion of group protection insurance in the Code extends its benefits to even more customers.

”As always, it remains essential for people to answer all questions carefully, to the best of their knowledge and belief, when they take out any protection insurance cover. However, the Code means that no-one should ever be worse off as a result of a genuine mistake.

”The guidance, introduced last year, was always mandatory for ABI members. However, we've taken this opportunity to upgrade it to a Code to remove any doubt that compliance with it is compulsory for ABI members. We are sure that this will help increase consumer confidence in it.”