FSC logs fewer complaints against insurers of assets
Published:Sunday | February 26, 2012 | 12:00 AM
Jamaicans are less tetchy about the treatment meted out to them by insurers of their homes and autos, but they remain peeved at the people who handle their pensions and investments, according to the most recent data.
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said it has seen a reduction in the total number of complaints within the year ending March 2011 against general insurance companies. Concurrently, there has been a slight uptick in other areas that it regulates — life insurance, the private pension sector and securities industry.
Complaints dropped to 214 last year, from 246, but general insurers were still the biggest culprits - mostly related to dissatisfaction with their handling of motor insurance claims.
Of the 214 complaints received, 140 were against general insurers or twice as many the number of claims for all other sectors combined. Still, that's down from 188 in the previous year ending March 2010. And the FSC said it managed to resolve 91 per cent of the cases.
The FSC said persons were mostly disgruntled about delays in claim settlements and lack of feedback from insurance companies; inadequate offers in the settlement of claims; and lack of investigation of claims reports.
Complaints lodged with the regulator in relation to securities firms rose from 12 to 17 with only 59 per cent resolved; for pensions, it moved from 28 to 37, of which 89 per cent were settled; and life insurance rose slightly from 18 to 20 complaints, with 75 per cent resolved.
Top of the complaints list for pension was unpaid pension entitlements. The FSC also logged a number of queries on members' vesting rights, the rights of plan members under the Pensions Act and concerns regarding the fair distribution of pension fund surplus.
The FSC has a unit dedicated to investigating and resolving complaints. The regulator said each complaint is first assessed internally to determine:
whether the complaint is assessed to determine if it falls under the purview of the FSC;
whether the grievance is addressed in the respective constitutive documents;
whether it is a complaint against state benefits; or
whether the complaint is before the court.
The FSC does not deal with matters that are already before the court or are complaints against the State.
The regulator acknowledges receipt of claims within five days, but says it holds to this rule only about 90 per cent of the time.
Cases are to be resolved within 90 days but FSC says it is currently doing better—averaging 80 days.
At the end of the investigation process, a detailed explanation and reasons for the FSC's decision is provided to the complainant.