Complaints Procedure

If you believe that your life insurance policy was mis-sold, or you feel that any investment element has not performed as it should have because of the insurance firm's management of the policy or of your funds, you may wish to make a complaint.

In this case you are advised to:

• Make the complaint to your insurance provider first: if they are FSA (Financial Services Authority) regulated they should have published a 'complaints procedure' on their website or have a leaflet available in-branch. Their aim should be to investigate your complaint thoroughly and make enquiries where appropriate. If you make your complaint in person or by telephone, note down the name of the person with whom you spoke, as well as the date and time of your call or consultation. If you do not hear back within three weeks time, follow up your phone call or consultation with a letter, detailing your complaint: keep copies of the complaint letters that you send for future reference.
  
  
• If you are unhappy with the response that you receive, you can use an independent complaint system. You can contact the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) within six months of the final response that you receive from your provider. The FOS is contactable at:
  
  South Quay Plaza
  183 Marshall Wall
  London E14 9SR
  England                           Tel: (+44) 0845 080 1800
  
  
• If you feel that there were unfair terms in your contract, you can refer your case to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) or to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). The FSA do not have the authority to refund any money that you have lost due to unfair contract terms, but they will appeal to your insurance firm on your behalf.

Each of these organisations can be contacted in the event of a complaint regarding your life insurance policy or loss of money due to the insurance company's handling of your policy:

• The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) www.citizensadvice.org.uk
  
  
• The Financial Services Authority (FSA) www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk
  
  
• The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) www.fscs.org.uk
  Compensation varies depending on the type of policy that you have, but will typically be less than one hundred percent of any money lost. The FSCS will usually help only if your insurance provider has gone out of business, or if they are in the process of liquidation and are likely not to be able to pay you the money that they promised.
  
  
• Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
  The maxmium refund of any money lost is £100,000.

It is worth remembering that there are statutory regulations in the UK which are designed to assist you when lodging a complaint, or when you feel that a policy did not perform in the way that your insurer assured you it would. The law recognises that life insurance can be complicated and that you may not feel that you have the power or ability to make a complaint against your insurer. For this reason, the standard complaints procedure outlined above was created. It should enable you to register your complaint in an efficient and effective way.