News that an overwhelming majority of our 651 MPs still want to ban the bundling of home insurance with mortgages says more about the lethargy of insurance brokers than the integrity of our parliamentarians.

Bundling has been a bugbear for brokers for several years. But it has taken a direct insurer, Direct Line, to revitalise the issue, rather than a broker or a trade body.

And after all, with the election just around the corner, most MPs are likely to “strongly disagree” with a practice that leaves voters out of pocket.

But the Mori poll results have raised important questions. Where was the outcry from these MPs when the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) shelved the banning legislation last December? And why did the DTI shelve the legislation on the grounds that there were very few lenders who actually carried out bundling?

If something is wrong for the consumer, it is wrong, no matter how few practitioners it affects.


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