Not upheld: market withdrawal and policy termination complaint against Maiden Life Försäkrings AB, UK Branch trading as Maiden Life AB

Decision detail

Summary

Miss D, Mr D and Mrs D complained that Maiden Life Försäkrings AB had unfairly withdrawn their Family Protection Plan from the market, resulting in the termination of their cover on 30 November 2025. The complainants had been members of the group policy (held by a credit union) for many years and were concerned about obtaining alternative cover. The ombudsman found that Maiden Life was entitled to make the commercial decision to withdraw from the UK market and had provided adequate notice (significantly more than the contractual requirement of 30 days) to the policyholder. The policy terms allowed for monthly renewal and did not guarantee lifetime or long-term cover. The ombudsman concluded that Maiden Life had not treated the complainants unfairly and did not uphold the complaint.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Maiden Life was entitled to exercise its legitimate commercial discretion to withdraw from the UK market. The firm complied with contractual notice requirements by providing substantially more than the required 30 days' notice to the policyholder (the credit union). The policy terms did not guarantee lifetime or long-term cover, but rather renewed monthly. The ombudsman noted that while the complainants' concerns about obtaining alternative cover were understandable, Maiden Life was not responsible for the availability or cost of alternative insurance or for how the credit union communicated the decision.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website