Not upheld: service failure and inadequate communication complaint against Insure & Go Insurance Services Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mrs H complained to Insure & Go after being stranded abroad following her father's death and unable to afford an airline amendment fee to return home early. She asked Insure & Go to help persuade the insurer to pay the upfront cost, and Insure & Go promised to call her back with updates but failed to do so. Although Insure & Go attempted to escalate the matter with the insurer, the policy did not provide the cover Mrs H sought. The ombudsman found that whilst Insure & Go should have maintained contact, the £150 compensation it had already paid was fair as the policy would not have covered the requested assistance regardless of the service failure.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that whilst Insure & Go should have called Mrs H back to keep her informed, this would not have changed the overall outcome as the policy simply did not provide the cover Mrs H wanted. The insurer had already refused to pay the upfront cost, and Insure & Go's attempts to persuade the insurer were unsuccessful. The ombudsman was satisfied that Insure & Go was trying to help but did not realise what it was asking for went beyond the policy's terms. The £150 compensation already paid was deemed a fair acknowledgement of the service failure in not calling Mrs H back as promised.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website