The Insurance Information Service (IIS), a complaints and queries telephone line, has been operated by the Irish Insurance Federation since 1986. Its purpose is to answer policyholders' questions and help them to resolve problems.
According to the IIS, in 1998 almost 9,000 people contacted the service. Of these, 7,524 were queries about insurance issues generally and 1,445 were complaints. When a complaint is lodged, the IIS contacts the insurance company concerned regarding the issue in question. "Increasingly, a significant number of potential complaints are resolved by the service without recourse to the insurers and those are recorded in the queries figures," says an IIF spokesman. Up to June of 1999, the IIS dealt with 4,476 queries and 744 complaints.
The main source of activity within the service is motor insurance. In 1998, there were 3,662 motor queries with callers requiring advice and assistance, representing 49 per cent of the total number of queries received. Complaints regarding motor insurance totalled 1,186, making up 82 per cent of the total complaints received.
The recurring issues found by the service in relation to motor insurance are the cost, and limited availability, of cover for young drivers. Pre-accident values in the event of a claim also continue to be an area of disquiet.
The service has also received a substantial number of queries and complaints regarding life policies, particularly pensions issues, and household policy contents cover for tenants in rented accommodation.
The service is a liaison service only and has no binding powers. The Insurance Ombudsman deals with complaints and disputes between policyholders and their insurance companies once the company's complaints procedure has been exhausted.
Unlike the IIS, the Insurance Ombudsman has the power to oppose an insurance company's decision in relation to an individual policyholder. This decision is binding on the company but not on the individual. Policyholders may always take the court option if they are not satisfied with the Ombudsman's ruling.
The IIF's Insurance Information Service may be contacted between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday to Friday. Call the Irish Insurance Federation's main number, (01) 676 1943 and ask for information officers Mr Neville Fox or Mr Frank Farrell.
