Not upheld: failure to place policy in Trust complaint against Zurich Assurance Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs R complained that Zurich Assurance Ltd failed to place her Hambro Adaptable Life Plan into Trust when it commenced in 1984 and failed to rectify this error in 1994 when she requested it. The ombudsman found no evidence that Mrs R completed and submitted a Trust form to Zurich in either year, based on the absence of documentation from the application process and the fact that a 1994 telephone call indicated Trust forms were still to be sent. The ombudsman determined that Zurich's offer to allow Mrs R to place the policy in Trust now by completing a signed Trust form is a fair and reasonable resolution, as it would place her in the same position as if the Trust had been established in 1984. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found on the balance of probabilities that Mrs R did not complete and submit a Trust form to Zurich in either 1984 or 1994, based on the absence of evidence from the application documents, the internal new business sheet, and the fact that a 1994 telephone call indicated Trust forms were still to be sent (proving no Trust existed in 1984). Even if Zurich had made an error, the ombudsman determined that Zurich's offer to allow Mrs R to place the policy in Trust now by completing and returning a signed Trust form is a fair and reasonable resolution, as this would place her in the same position as if the Trust had been established in 1984.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website