Not upheld: Card / payment disputes complaint against Right Choice Insurance Brokers Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Ms M complained that Right Choice Insurance Brokers Ltd improperly processed an address change to her motor insurance policy and charged an additional premium of £562.25 without her agreement. Ms M claimed she had requested a quote for a change of address with an effective date in February 2025, not November 2024. Right Choice provided screenshots demonstrating that the online system would not permit selection of dates beyond one month from the request date, making it impossible for Ms M to have selected a February 2025 date in November 2024. The ombudsman found Ms M's testimony inconsistent and implausible, and concluded she had selected 17 November 2024 as the effective date. The ombudsman determined Right Choice acted fairly in processing the change, notifying Ms M, and charging the additional premium, and therefore did not uphold the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found Right Choice's screenshots persuasive evidence of the online process, which demonstrated that Ms M could not have selected a date in February 2025 when requesting the quote in November 2024, as the system only allowed dates up to one month ahead. The ombudsman noted Ms M's inconsistency in stating the move date was either 17 February 2025 or 2 February 2025, neither of which would have been selectable. The ombudsman concluded it was implausible that Ms M would seek a quote for an amendment with an effective date after the policy lapse date. Therefore, the ombudsman was persuaded that Ms M had input 17 November 2024 as the effective date, and Right Choice acted fairly in processing the change and notifying Ms M.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website