Not upheld: policy cancellation due to non-payment; treatment of vulnerable customer in financial difficulty complaint against Adrian Flux Insurance Services Group

Decision detail

Summary

Mr K complained that Adrian Flux unfairly cancelled his motor insurance policy after his finance agreement for the premium was cancelled by the finance provider. Mr K had informed Adrian Flux of his vulnerability and financial difficulties and requested the cancellation be paused while his complaint was resolved. Adrian Flux offered a four-monthly payment plan and noted the finance provider would reinstate the agreement for ten monthly payments, but when no arrangement was agreed, it proceeded with cancellation on 19 December 2025. The ombudsman found that Adrian Flux acted fairly by giving Mr K reasonable opportunity to arrange alternative payment and that proceeding with cancellation was reasonable to avoid allowing the debt to accumulate further, thereby causing foreseeable harm to a customer in financial difficulty. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that while Adrian Flux was contractually entitled to cancel the policy when the finance agreement ended and no premium was paid, the key question was whether it responded fairly given Mr K's circumstances. The ombudsman noted that Adrian Flux paused the cancellation process initially, offered a payment plan (albeit unaffordable), and delayed cancellation again to allow Mr K to arrange alternative payment. The ombudsman reasoned that allowing the policy to continue while the premium debt increased would itself cause foreseeable harm to Mr K in financial difficulty. Therefore, beginning the cancellation process was the reasonable course of action.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website