The UK financial watchdog is to increase scrutiny of home and travel insurers following a “super complaint” by consumer champion Which?.
Following a year of campaigning against falling standards affecting tens of millions of customers, Which? used its statutory powers to make a super-complaint to the industry regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), back in September.
The consumer champion highlighted customers’ poor treatment throughout the claims-handling process, as well as difficulties with customer comprehension of the terms and conditions of the policies, which they described as “unfairly disadvantageous to consumers”.
The FCA published its own report into claims-handling in July 2025, having reviewed the processes of 15 home insurance providers and eight travel insurance providers.
As a result, the regulator concluded that there were significant areas for improvement, but, according to Which?, it failed to address several vital issues that could harm consumers.
However, this spurred Which? to launch its super-complaint in the hopes of achieving “a reset of the markets for home and travel insurance so that they properly serve the needs of consumers”.
On Thursday, the FCA responded to Which?’s concerns, vowing to do more to improve both claims-handling and consumer understanding of products, through reviews of individual firms and scrutiny of the different ways in which these firms sell insurance products.
Graeme Reynolds, director of competition and interim director of insurance at the FCA, has said: “We welcome Which? shining a light on issues we identified in home and travel insurance”.
“We’ve set out more detail on the action we’ve already taken to fix problems, and we’re expanding our existing workplan to improve the claims process and consumer understanding of their cover,” he added.
Commenting on the news, Hannah Gurga, Association of British Insurers (ABI) director general, stated: “The FCA has provided helpful clarity on how home and travel insurers can do even more to support their customers, while recognising that most people are satisfied with how their claim is handled.”
“We look forward to working closely with Which?, the FCA and wider industry to build on the progress already made, strengthen trust in our sector, and ensure people get the help they need when it matters most,” she added.
Reported by Hazel Broderick