ICOBS 6.2 Pre-contract information: general insurance contracts

This section applies in relation to a general insurance contract.

Before a general insurance contract is concluded, a firm must inform a customer who is a natural person of:

1. (1)

   the law applicable to the contract where the parties do not have a free choice, or the fact that the parties are free to choose the law applicable and, in the latter case, the law the firm proposes to choose; and

2. (2)

   the arrangements for handling policyholders’ complaints concerning contracts including, where appropriate, the existence of a complaints body (usually the Financial Ombudsman Service), without prejudice to the policyholders’ right to take legal proceedings.

1. (1)

   If the insurance undertaking is an EEA firm, the firm must inform the customer, before any commitment is entered into, of the EEA State in which the head office or, where appropriate, the branch with which the contract is to be concluded, is situated.

2. (2)

   Any documents issued to the customer must convey the information required by this rule.

The contract or any other document granting cover, together with the insurance proposal where it is binding upon the customer, must state the address of the head office, or, where appropriate, of the branch of the insurance undertaking which grants the cover.

1. (1)

   A firm must provide a consumer with information on the right to cancel a policy.

2. (2)

   The information to be provided on the right to cancel is:

   1. (a)

      its existence;

   2. (b)

      its duration;

   3. (c)

      the conditions for exercising it;

   4. (d)

      information on the amount which the consumer may be required to pay if he exercises it;

   5. (e)

      the consequences of not exercising it; and

   6. (f)

      the practical instructions for exercising it.

3. (3)

   The information must be provided in good time before conclusion of the contract and in writing or another durable medium.