Price comparison sites told to treat insurance customers fairly
Price comparison sites that offer quotes on general insurance policies have been reminded by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) of their commitment to treating customers fairly.
The regulator has published a list of requirements for general insurance price comparison sites, including a need to provide guidance on customer eligibility and to accept liability for the regulated services they provide.
"We are proposing this guidance because we found there to be a lack of understanding within the industry generally about the regulated activity being conducted by these firms, leading to failures to comply with our rules," the FSA states.
The new guidance is aimed at price comparison sites that offer general insurance policies, as well as direct aggregators of different products from across the industry.
Sites falling into either of these categories are warned not to provide quotes based on generic risk criteria that could be perceived by the customer as being based on their individual circumstances.
Policies purchased through a price comparison site, rather than directly with the insurer, may also be subject to limited benefits - where the insurer may refuse to pay out part of the sum that would be awarded had the policy been arranged directly - the FSA notes.
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