DISP 1.11 The Society of Lloyd's
Complaints handling procedures1
The Society must establish and maintain appropriate and effective procedures for handling complaints by policyholders against members of the Society which comply with this chapter.
A member of the Society must, in complying with this chapter, ensure that the arrangements which the member maintains are compatible with the Lloyd's complaint procedures, so that, taken as a whole, the requirements of this sourcebook are met.
The Society must take reasonable steps to ensure that complaints by policyholders against members of the Society are dealt with under the Lloyd's complaint procedures and that members comply with the requirements of those procedures.
Referral to the Financial Ombudsman Service
A complaint by a policyholder against a member of the Society may not be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service until after the Lloyd's complaint procedures have been completed or until after the end of eight weeks from receipt of the complaint, whichever is the earlier.
Exemptions for members
- (1)
A notification claiming exemption under DISP 1.1.12 R from the complaints reporting rules and the rules relating to the funding of the Financial Ombudsman Service must be given to the FSA by the Society on behalf of any member eligible for an exemption.
- (2)
The Society must notify the FSA if the conditions relating to such an exemption no longer apply to a member who is exempt.
Complaints reporting rule
The report to be sent to the FSA under the complaints reporting rules must be provided by the Society and must cover all complaints by policyholders against members falling within the scope of the complaints reporting rules.
Obligation to publish summary of complaints data
1Where, in accordance with DISP 1.11.6 R, the Society submits a report to the FSA reporting 500 or more complaints, it must publish a summary of the complaints data contained in that report (the complaints data summary).
Format of publication
1The Society must publish the complaints data summary in the format set out in the complaints publication form in DISP 1 Annex 1B R omitting details as to the firms and brands/trading names covered by the summary.
Time limits for publication
1The deadlines for publication of the Society's complaints data summaries are:
Confirmation of publication
1The Society must immediately confirm to the FSA, in an email submitted to complaintsdatasummary@fsa.gov.uk, that the complaints data summary accurately reflects the report submitted to the FSA, that the summary has been published and where it has been published.
Mode and content of publication
1The Society may choose how it publishes the complaints data summary. However, the complaints data summary should be readily available. For this reason, the FSA recommends that the Society publishes the summary on its website. The Society may publish further information with the complaints data summary to aid understanding.
Application to members
Each member of the Society is individually subject to the rules in this chapter as a result of the insurance market direction given in DISP 2.5.4 G under section 316 of the Act (Direction by Authority).
However, the Society operates a two-tier internal complaints handling procedure, currently set out in the "Code for Underwriting agents: UK Personal Lines Claims and Complaints Handling". Under this procedure, complaints by policyholders against members of the Society are considered by the managing agent and then, if necessary, by the Society's in-house Complaints Department. This procedure (and any procedure that may replace it) will be subject to the requirements in this chapter.
Members will individually comply with this chapter if and only if all complaints by policyholders against members are dealt with under the Lloyd's complaints procedures. Accordingly, certain of the obligations under this chapter, for example the obligation to report on complaints received and the obligation to pay fees under the rules relating to the funding of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FEES 5), must be complied with by the Society on behalf of members. Managing agents will not have to make a separate report to the FSA on complaints reported under the complaints reporting rules sent by the Society.
Complaints about the activities of members' advisers
Complaints from members of the Society regarding the activities of members' advisers, which cannot be resolved by the members' adviser, cannot be referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Complaints from members or former members
The Financial Ombudsman Service is not able to deal with the complaints listed in DISP 1.11.13 R and separate rules and guidance are therefore required.
The Society must establish and maintain appropriate and effective arrangements for handling any complaint from a member or a former member about:
- (1)
regulated activities carried on by the Society;
- (2)
the Society's regulatory functions carried on by the Society, the Council or those to whom the Council delegates authority to carry out such functions;
- (3)
advice given by an underwriting agent to a person to become, continue or cease to be, a member of a particular syndicate; and
- (4)
the management by a managing agent of the underwriting capacity of a syndicate on which the complainant participates or has participated.
The Society must maintain by byelaw one or more appropriate effective schemes for the resolution of disputes between an individual member or a former member who was an individual member and:
- (1)
his underwriting agent; or
- (2)
the Society.
For the purposes of DISP 1.11.13 R "individual member" includes a member which is a limited liability partnership or a body corporate whose members consist only of, or of the nominees for, a single natural person or a group of connected persons.
The schemes to which DISP 1.11.13 R currently refers are the Lloyd's Arbitration Scheme and the Lloyd's Members' Ombudsman respectively, but the Society may maintain other independent dispute resolution schemes in addition to, or instead of, either of these schemes.
The schemes referred to in DISP 1.11.13 R should be operationally independent of the Society.
An individual member or former member who was an individual member should not have access to the schemes referred to in DISP 1.11.13 R unless the complaints arrangements maintained by the Society have failed to resolve the complaint to his satisfaction within eight weeks of receiving it.
The Society should give the FSA adequate notice of all proposed changes to the byelaws relating to the schemes referred to in DISP 1.11.13 R.
When considering what is required to ensure the operational independence of the schemes referred to in DISP 1.11.13 R, or proposed changes in such schemes, the Society should take account of similar arrangements operated by the Financial Ombudsman Service.
A contravention of DISP 1.11.13 R or DISP 1.11.14 R does not give rise to a right of action by a private person under section 150 of the Act (Actions for damages) and each of those rules is specified under section 150(2) of the Act as a provision giving rise to no such right of action.