FSC's Life Code of Practice
/
As of 1 October, the Financial Services Council (FSC) has put into practice its Life Code of Practice, with all life insurers working on a voluntary basis to implement it. From July 2017, however, all FSC life insurance members will require compliance. The code was originally due out in July 2016, but was pushed out after consultations took longer than expected.
The key Code promises are:
- We will be honest, fair, respectful, transparent, timely, and where possible we will use plain language in our communications with you.
- We will monitor sales by our staff and our authorised representatives to ensure sales are appropriate.
- If we discover that an inappropriate sale has occurred, we will discuss a remedy with you, such as a refund or a replacement policy.
- We will provide additional support if you have difficulty with the process of buying insurance or making a claim.
- When you make a claim, we will explain the claim process to you and keep you informed about our progress in making a decision on your claim.
- We will make a decision on your claim within the timeframes defined in the Code, and if we cannot meet these timeframes you can access our complaints process.
- If we deny your claim, we will explain the reasons in writing and let you know the next steps if you disagree with our decision.
- We will restrict the use of investigators and surveillance, to ensure your legitimate right to privacy.
- The independent Code Compliance Committee will monitor our compliance with the Code.
- If we do not correct Code breaches, sanctions can be imposed on us
