Upheld: Motor insurance, claim handling complaint against Qmetric Group Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr D complained that Qmetric provided a high renewal quote due to an open claim on his record that he had withdrawn in January 2023. Although Qmetric's claims handler recorded the withdrawal, the system was not updated before renewal quotes were sent in February and March 2024, resulting in an inflated premium. Mr D spent significant time chasing Qmetric to rectify the error, but the claim was not removed from the system until 27 March, after his policy had expired, leaving him without cover. Qmetric initially rejected the complaint but later offered a settlement including a reduced renewal premium, £250 compensation, and retroactive cover. The ombudsman upheld the complaint and found Qmetric's settlement offer fair and reasonable.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Qmetric could have done more to assist Mr D by proactively liaising with their claims handlers to rectify the records before the policy expired, rather than leaving Mr D to chase them. However, the ombudsman was satisfied that Qmetric's settlement offer was fair because: (1) the renewal premium at £247.63 with £100 covered by Qmetric brought the cost below the previous year's premium, accounting for general market increases; (2) honouring the policy from 25 March with no charge ensured no loss from the policy expiring; and (3) £250 compensation fairly reflected the short-term distress and inconvenience caused.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website