Conflict of Interest?

Apfelbaum

MattMattMattUK said:

Just because you do not like the answer you get, does not mean that answer is wrong.

What answer have I said was wrong or are you referring to someone else in the thread? I have only asked questions and provided information.

Do you have any advice on how the conflict of interest that is the subject of this thread should be resolved? Or do you disagree that it could be seen to be a conflict of interest? Or do you think that even if it could be seen as a conflict it is not in breach of the FCA code?

XRS200

Are first central an intermediary?  Who is the insurer?

Apfelbaum

XRS200 said:

Are first central an intermediary?  Who is the insurer?

As far as I can tell from the policy documents, they are the insurer.

MattMattMattUK

Apfelbaum said:

MattMattMattUK said:

Just because you do not like the answer you get, does not mean that answer is wrong.

What answer have I said was wrong or are you referring to someone else in the thread? I have only asked questions and provided information.

You seem to believe that you have the right to force them to repair your vehicle, you do not, you seem to want to argue with anyone who does not agree with your position.

Apfelbaum said:

Do you have any advice on how the conflict of interest that is the subject of this thread should be resolved? Or do you disagree that it could be seen to be a conflict of interest?

I disagree that it would be a conflict of interest because of the way that the separation of claims happens within insurers, something that I have had to deal with in the past when "the other party's insurer", the same insurer as mine, was not responding to my insurer. When a claim goes in they nominate one party as the third party, usually depending on who puts the claim in first, but not always, then two entirely separate teams who do not talk apart from officially in the same way as they deal with external insurers manage the claims. 

Apfelbaum said:
Or do you think that even if it could be seen as a conflict it is not in breach of the FCA code?

I think one could perceive it as a breach if one chose to, but that does not make it a breach. 

Now them refusing to allow you to use the legal expenses element is different, but it is unclear if you have an issue because they will not let you use the legal expenses element for the hire car because they have refused to repay your hire car expenses, if they have actually refused to repay hire car expenses, if you are trying to claim for a period after they paid out and completed the claim etc. 

Apfelbaum

MattMattMattUK said:

Apfelbaum said:

MattMattMattUK said:

Just because you do not like the answer you get, does not mean that answer is wrong.

What answer have I said was wrong or are you referring to someone else in the thread? I have only asked questions and provided information.

You seem to believe that you have the right to force them to repair your vehicle, you do not, you seem to want to argue with anyone who does not agree with your position.

Apfelbaum said:

Do you have any advice on how the conflict of interest that is the subject of this thread should be resolved? Or do you disagree that it could be seen to be a conflict of interest?

I disagree that it would be a conflict of interest because of the way that the separation of claims happens within insurers, something that I have had to deal with in the past when "the other party's insurer", the same insurer as mine, was not responding to my insurer. When a claim goes in they nominate one party as the third party, usually depending on who puts the claim in first, but not always, then two entirely separate teams who do not talk apart from officially in the same way as they deal with external insurers manage the claims. 

Apfelbaum said:
Or do you think that even if it could be seen as a conflict it is not in breach of the FCA code?

I think one could perceive it as a breach if one chose to, but that does not make it a breach. 

Now them refusing to allow you to use the legal expenses element is different, but it is unclear if you have an issue because they will not let you use the legal expenses element for the hire car because they have refused to repay your hire car expenses, if they have actually refused to repay hire car expenses, if you are trying to claim for a period after they paid out and completed the claim etc. 

I think you are reading things that are not there. I have asked for advice and clarification. No mention of "force" express or otherwise.

My point is that they did not use two separate teams, otherwise it wouldn't have been (or in the words of the FCA, "seen to have been") a conflict of interest.

As above the FCA wording is that it must not to be "seen" to be a conflict, "perceived" and "seen" have the same meaning in this context. This by definition puts them in breach.

When you say "they" are you referring to the third party insurance team or my own because according to the FCA those should be two different entities. Again in the words of the FCA "as if they were two separate companies. So who would be the "they" in this case? My own insurer who I pay to look after my interest or the third party's insurer who looks after their own interest (that interest being paying out as little as possible to me as the non-fault party).

DullGreyGuy

XRS200 said:

Are first central an intermediary?  Who is the insurer?

1st Central are an intermediary as per the opening lines of their policy book:

Your insurance policy is arranged by 1st Central, which is the brand name of First Central Insurance Management Limited. The motor insurer is named on your Certificate of Insurance.

1st Central acts for you, as an intermediary, when it arranges this motor insurance. We set out our role in detail in the accompanying document “About Our Insurance Service (AOIS)”.

If you look at the second mentioned document it states they deal with claims on a delegated authority basis from the motor insurer so go beyond the typical role of a broker 

Apfelbaum

DullGreyGuy said:

XRS200 said:

Are first central an intermediary?  Who is the insurer?

1st Central are an intermediary as per the opening lines of their policy book:

Your insurance policy is arranged by 1st Central, which is the brand name of First Central Insurance Management Limited. The motor insurer is named on your Certificate of Insurance.

1st Central acts for you, as an intermediary, when it arranges this motor insurance. We set out our role in detail in the accompanying document “About Our Insurance Service (AOIS)”.

If you look at the second mentioned document it states they deal with claims on a delegated authority basis from the motor insurer so go beyond the typical role of a broker 

Thanks for the clarification.

Since they are named as my insurers and since when I took out the policy it was First Central I was only dealing with them, how does this affect my query?

DullGreyGuy

Apfelbaum said:

DullGreyGuy said:

XRS200 said:

Are first central an intermediary?  Who is the insurer?

1st Central are an intermediary as per the opening lines of their policy book:

Your insurance policy is arranged by 1st Central, which is the brand name of First Central Insurance Management Limited. The motor insurer is named on your Certificate of Insurance.

1st Central acts for you, as an intermediary, when it arranges this motor insurance. We set out our role in detail in the accompanying document “About Our Insurance Service (AOIS)”.

If you look at the second mentioned document it states they deal with claims on a delegated authority basis from the motor insurer so go beyond the typical role of a broker 

Thanks for the clarification.

Since they are named as my insurers and since when I took out the policy it was First Central I was only dealing with them, how does this affect my query?

They have two companies... 

First Central Insurance Management - this is a broker and who you buy the policy from. They sell insurance from a range of insurers but have claims handling authority

First Central Underwriting - this is an overseas insurance company owned by the group and one of the insurers in the list of their panel insurers. 

Many will mistake First Central Insurance Management as their insurer because all the paperwork is branded to them. The certificate of insurance confirms who the actual insurer/underwriter is who may happen to be their sister company or not.


I was answering @XRS200's query, you'd need to ask them what their thinking was for asking it. My guess is that they'd suggest you cutout the middleman and go direct to the insurer but it doesn't really work like that if delegated authorities are in place and even more so where its a sister company. 

Almost certainly First Central Underwriting is bare bones out in Gibraltar and almost all functions will be in the UK with their sister company. However it does mean they can get away with the lighter regulations that exist in Gib -v- the UK.