Motor most complained about insurance product – FCA

Motor and transport cover is the most complained about insurance product, excluding payment protection insurance (PPI), according to new complaints data from the FCA for the first half of 2017.

Motor was also the fourth most complained about financial services product overall in the first half of 2017 after a 9% increase in complaints compared with the second half of 2016.

There were 240,497 complaints about motor and transport insurance in the first half of 2017, up from 219,815 in the second half of 2016.

This put the product ahead of packaged back accounts in the top five most complicated about financial products, but behind PPI, current accounts and credit cards.

PPI was the most complained about financial service overall, with 1.1 million complaints in the first half of 2017. This was a 24% increase on the 899,051 PPI complaints seen in the second half of 2016.

Motor was the most complained about insurance product measured by number of complaints and by number of complaints per 1,000 policies. There were 6.5 complaints per 1,000 policies for motor and transport cover.

Overall, there were 688,527 complaints about insurance and pure protection, excluding PPI, in the first half of 2017.

‘Other general insurance’ was the second most complained about product, with 185,975 complaints and 3.56 complaints per 1,000 policies.

Property came third with 81,145 complaints and 2.53 complaints per 1,000 policies.

The FCA data also showed that 58% of insurance and protection complaints were upheld in favour of the complainant in the first half of 2017, down from 59% in 2017.

Companies in the insurance and pure protection category, which includes insurers and brokers, paid out £42m of redress in the first half of 2017.

By contrast, those offering PPI paid out £1.6bn.

Insurance and pure protection complaints