FORD PPI - Consolidated Life Assurance / Consolidated Marine General Insurance

stancrom

Anyone aware of who were the ACTUAL underwriters of PPI policies sold by Ford Credit Europe plc were in the period 1995-1998?

These were VERY aggressively sold by Ford dealerships at a time when they could seemingly get away with it without any risk of comeback. I was one of the mugs. Policy documents I have from back then mention BOTH Consolidated Life Assurance Co. Ltd AND Consolidated Marine General Insurance Ltd as the underwriters, rather confusingly.

Neither Ford Credit nor the dealerships accept no responsibility for mis-selling, obviously. Plus I've been informed recently by ReAssure (formerly Windsor Life) who apparently took over the business of Consolidated Life Assurance Co. Ltd that Consolidated Marine General Insurance Ltd. became insolvent over a decade ago.... and that they (specifically, and conveniently...?) were the sole underwriters of the policies, not the other part of the business for which they are now responsible. They say they didn't take on the General Marine business during the Consolidated acquisition. This may well be true but a few things I've noted online recently suggest things are a little less clear than that... Any info to clarify who the underwriters of the Ford-sold policies were at the time would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[Deleted User]

This pre-dates regulation by ten years and I think your chances of getting any underwriter to admit any liability are nil to be honest, especially as the original firm are no longer trading.
I think you'll have to accept defeat on this one...especially as you posted a similar thread just a few days ago and were told the same thing.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4644363

-taff

Or ask Ford Credit plc?

stancrom

Thanks taff- that was the first thing I did - they said they didn't know!

tegucigalpa

Hi,

This is mainly aimed at Stancrom in the hope that you're still posting, however help from anyone would be appreciated. I am trying to put together a PPI claim for my parents who bought a car in 1993 using Ford Credit. As Stancrom states, the underwriters were Consolidated Life Assurance and Consolidated Marine General Insurance. Other than your post last year, I can find nothing to suggest these companies were taken over by anyone still in business. Stancrom mentions that Consolidated Life Assurance were taken over by Windsor Life, now ReAssure. However I have spoken with ReAssure who deny any knowledge of this. Could you let me know how you found that connection and if anyone has had any joy with claims against these companies.
Many thanks in advance

[Deleted User]

tegucigalpa wrote: »

This is mainly aimed at Stancrom

Stancrom last logged into the forum in early March 2014.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/member.php?u=2168859

The answers to this thread and the other one which Stancrom started on the same subject should have already given you some indication that a complaint 11 years prior to regulation to a firm no longer trading is very unlikely to get anywhere.
Here's his other very bad tempered thread;
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4644363

The other thread dissolved into a discussion of taking the court route...

magpiecottage

tegucigalpa wrote: »

business. Stancrom mentions that Consolidated Life Assurance were taken over by Windsor Life, now ReAssure. However I have spoken with ReAssure who deny any knowledge of this.

When an insurer goes bust, one of two things happens.

The first is that another insurer takes over the business. This typically happens with long term investment type business - personal pensions, endowments and so on. That is because the policyholders' money is ringfenced. It is still there and the "white knight" is able to take over managing the policies and make a reasonable profit on it - they may lose a few claims but they also acquire the business at a fraction of the cost it would normally be.

Windsor Life specialised in taking over life assurance companies which were not accepting new business so Consolidation Life would have fitted into this model.

The second is general insurance. Such policies tend to be short term - typically for a year at a time, albeit that they are usually renewed. PPI is this type of insurance policy.

Because it is short term and the premium for the year has, in most cases, already been paid, it is not at all attractive to a new insurer. They would pick up the liability but have no premium to show for it and no reason to suppose the policyholder would renew. So neither Windsor Life nor any other company would be likely to buy a failing insurance company of this type.

If a normal claim for an insured event had taken place at that time then you would have been able to seek assistance from the policyholder's protection scheme (a forerunner of the FSCS), but it would not have covered misselling allegations.

tegucigalpa

Thanks for the replies.
I have managed to find another site called policydetective.co.uk which I am told by ReAssure is reliable. This site shows that Consolidated Life Assurance Policies are now administered by Windsor Life, which is now called ReAssure. Oddly, or conveniently, when speaking to ReAssure they still deny knowledge of Consolidated! Hey ho, the F.O.S have taken the complaint so we'll see what happens. They did explain that while regulation of finance houses like Ford Credit didn't start whilst 2005, Insurance companies were regulated a long time prior to this, hence its worth trying. I have managed to win one complaint from the mid nineties from Barclays too, so there's always hope!

[Deleted User]

tegucigalpa wrote: »

the F.O.S have taken the complaint so we'll see what happens.

Nothing will happen. FOS cannot have the complaint referred to them unless it has already been presented to the original seller of the insurance. All FOS will be doing now is trying to find a financial institution willing to accept liability for any mis-sale which may have taken place. Even in the unlikely event that FOS do identify such an institution, you'll still have to make your own complaint and there are no guarantees of success even then.

tegucigalpa wrote: »

They did explain that while regulation of finance houses like Ford Credit didn't start whilst 2005, Insurance companies were regulated a long time prior to this, hence its worth trying.

The regulation of general insurance sales only began in January 2005. Only the main banks (which subscribed to GISC) were regulated earlier than this. FOS are pinning their hopes on you going after the insurer rather than the seller.

dunstonh

Hey ho, the F.O.S have taken the complaint so we'll see what happens. They did explain that while regulation of finance houses like Ford Credit didn't start whilst 2005, Insurance companies were regulated a long time prior to this, hence its worth trying.

There is a very small number of cases (probably in the low single digits in terms of likelihood) where the insurer has liability rather than the seller. The FOS always tell people to try this but in the vast majority of cases it doesnt work. However, it is the option of last resort and does work for a very very small number of cases.

I have managed to win one complaint from the mid nineties from Barclays too, so there's always hope!

Very different as Banks had earlier regulation which is classed as continuous. There was the GISC but this does not make the insurer liable rather than the seller. It just means that if the insurer has liability, then they have to consider the complaint.