Not upheld: policy set up without consent; complaint handling service failure complaint against Great Lakes Insurance UK Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs B complained that Great Lakes set up a buildings and contents insurance policy in 2024 with her and her former partner as joint policyholders without her knowledge or consent. She discovered the policy in June 2025 and noted she had left the property due to domestic violence and already had cover elsewhere. Great Lakes accepted service failings in complaint handling but maintained it acted fairly in accepting the policy based on the proposer's confirmation of consent during the online application. The ombudsman upheld Great Lakes' position, finding the firm was entitled to rely on the proposer's confirmation in good faith and had no reason to foresee a problem. The ombudsman found the £80 compensation offered for service failings to be fair and reasonable.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Great Lakes acted fairly in accepting the policy proposal based on the proposer's confirmation of consent, as insurers are entitled to rely on information provided during proposals in good faith. The ombudsman noted it is common for insurance policies to be taken out by one party for the benefit of two parties. While Mrs B did not consent, Great Lakes had no reason to foresee a problem. The £80 compensation for the service failing in sending correspondence to the wrong contact details is appropriate for administrative error causing distress and inconvenience.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website