Upheld: provision of unclear and contradictory advice and information complaint against Aviva Insurance Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr L complained about advice from Aviva regarding a trip extension for his travel insurance policy while he was abroad. Aviva initially advised he could not purchase an extension due to his medical history, but later acknowledged his condition was on the accepted conditions list. Mr L purchased alternative cover at lower cost. The ombudsman found Aviva's adviser provided unclear and contradictory information about coverage and medical declaration requirements, causing distress and inconvenience. Although Mr L suffered no financial loss, the ombudsman upheld the complaint and awarded £150 compensation for the poor service.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

While the policy definitions of 'trip' and trip duration were not unclear, the adviser failed to provide clear and accurate information about the cover available and gave contradictory information about medical declaration requirements. Although Mr L was not eligible for a trip upgrade at the point he called and suffered no financial loss (having obtained cheaper alternative cover), the contradictory information caused distress, inconvenience and frustration warranting compensation within the £100-£300 band for repeated small errors or a large single mistake.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website