Not upheld: mis-selling / unsuitable policy retention / alleged misrepresentation by omission complaint against Aviva Life & Pensions UK Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr A complained that Aviva encouraged him to retain a critical illness and life cover policy after he had repaid his mortgage early in 2020, despite the policy no longer being suitable. Mr A alleged that Aviva representatives, through their tone and framing of the conversations, discouraged cancellation and created a misrepresentation by omission regarding the diminishing value of the cover. The ombudsman reviewed the phone call recordings and found that Aviva representatives clearly stated they could not provide advice, explained the decreasing term nature of the policy, and made clear that cancellation was an option. The ombudsman rejected Mr A's characterisation that the conversations were framed to encourage retention and found that Aviva provided sufficient information for Mr A to make an informed decision without unfairly influencing him.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman listened to the phone call recordings and found that Aviva representatives did not advise Mr A to cancel the policy, but clearly stated they could not give advice and that Mr A should seek independent advice. The representatives explained the decreasing term nature of the policy and made clear that cancellation was an option. The ombudsman rejected Mr A's characterisation that the tone and framing discouraged cancellation, finding instead that the representatives provided information to enable Mr A to make an informed decision without unfairly influencing him toward retention.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website