Not upheld: claim handling — unfair treatment of claim and imposition of holding fee complaint against Watford Insurance Company Europe Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr W complained that Watford Insurance unfairly handled his mobile phone insurance claim by requiring him to pay postage costs and proposing a £200 holding fee to temporarily retain both his damaged and replacement devices while transferring data. Watford's final response rejected the complaint, citing policy terms and offering alternative solutions. The FOS investigator and ombudsman both found the complaint not upheld, determining that Watford's holding fee proposal was a reasonable accommodation outside strict policy terms, that the policy terms regarding device ownership were clear and standard, and that there were no avoidable delays or communication failures warranting compensation. While acknowledging Mr W's health difficulties during the process, the ombudsman found these could not be solely attributed to Watford's actions.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Watford's actions were fair and reasonable. The policy terms clearly required policyholders to send damaged devices to Watford, and upon replacement the damaged device becomes Watford's property. The £200 holding fee was proposed as a reasonable accommodation outside the strict policy terms to allow Mr W flexibility in retaining both devices temporarily while transferring data. This was preferable to Watford simply refusing to progress the claim. The online payment system issue was minor and adequately addressed by Watford's apology. There were no avoidable delays or communication failures of sufficient extent to warrant compensation. While the ombudsman acknowledged Mr W's health difficulties, these could not be solely attributed to Watford's actions beyond the expected frustration of making an insurance claim.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website