How long does my insurer have to respond to a complaint?

If you complain to your insurer, it has eight weeks to give you a final response for most types of complaint¹. That deadline runs from when the business receives your complaint, not from the day you first mention a problem. If the eight weeks pass without a final response, or you get one and disagree with it, you can take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service².

The ombudsman is free to consumers and independent of the insurer. You normally need to contact it within six months of the date on your final response³. Miss that window and the service may not be able to help, so the date on the letter matters as much as the eight-week deadline itself.

This page covers what counts as a final response, which complaints the eight-week rule covers, what happens when the deadline is missed, and how the six-month limit works. It applies to complaints about home, motor, travel, pet and medical insurance, and to complaints about being told you were underinsured.

Insurers have eight weeks to give a final response

The eight-week rule is the backbone of insurance complaints. The Financial Ombudsman Service tells insurers they have to give a final response within eight weeks for most types of complaint¹. The same wording appears across the ombudsman's consumer guidance for home insurance, critical illness cover and personal accident insurance³.

The deadline is not unique to insurance. Credit unions have eight weeks to investigate and give a final response⁸. Claims management companies have eight weeks to give their final response⁹. Citizens Advice states that the company must give you a final response to your complaint within 8 weeks¹⁰. The Financial Ombudsman Service itself says that for most complaints, a business has up to 8 weeks to consider a complaint¹¹.

Some complaints have shorter deadlines. Complaints about a payment from your account, such as a frozen account or a blocked payment, follow a different timetable: the business has to send you a response within 35 days¹². Complaints about electronic money and payment services can be answered with a final response within 15 business days¹³. These are the exceptions. For an ordinary insurance complaint about a claim, a renewal or a rejected payout, eight weeks is the figure that applies.

The clock starts when the insurer receives your complaint, not when you first raise a concern. If you phone to grumble and the call is logged as an enquiry rather than a complaint, the eight weeks may not have started. Making the complaint formal removes that doubt.

What counts as a final response

A final response is the insurer's written answer that sets out its position and tells you that you can take the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service if you are unhappy. It is the document that ends the insurer's own complaints process and starts the six-month clock for escalation.

Insurers describe it in similar terms. First Title Insurance says that within eight weeks of the receipt of your initial complaint it will either issue a final response or a response which explains why it needs more time¹⁴. Agria Pet Insurance says it will provide a final response letter confirming its investigation and conclusion no later than eight weeks after receiving your complaint¹⁵. The ombudsman's own case studies refer to the final response letter as the point at which the insurer states its position, for example that it paid the correct value¹⁶.

A holding letter is not a final response. If the insurer writes to say it is still investigating, the eight weeks continues to run. What matters is whether the letter tells you the outcome and your right to go to the ombudsman.

Complaints the eight-week deadline covers

The eight-week rule covers most insurance complaints, whatever the policy type. The ombudsman's business guidance is explicit for several categories:

• Underinsurance. When an insurer receives a complaint about underinsurance, it should reply to the consumer within eight weeks⁵.
• Misrepresentation and non-disclosure. Insurers should reply to the customer within eight weeks⁶.
• Accidental damage. Insurers replying to complaints involving accidental damage should reply to the customer within eight weeks¹⁷.
• Subsidence. The ombudsman publishes guidance on subsidence and ground movement complaints, and the same complaints-handling timetable applies¹⁸.
• Building warranties. Complaints about new-build warranties follow the same route to the ombudsman¹⁹.
• Vehicle repairs. Complaints about repairs after a motor claim are handled under the same rules²⁰.

The deadline also covers complaints that are not about a claim at all. If you complain about how a policy was sold, about a mid-term change, or about the way a renewal was priced, the eight weeks applies. Which? states that financial service providers must deal with any formal complaints within eight weeks¹⁰.

There is one important limit. The ombudsman can only look at complaints about firms it covers, and it can only step in once the insurer has had its chance to answer. For building warranty complaints, for example, the ombudsman can only look at complaints after certain conditions have been met, including that the builder failed to complete works by a deadline or is insolvent or not co-operating¹⁹. Those conditions sit alongside the eight-week rule rather than replacing it.

If your insurer misses the deadline or you disagree

If the eight weeks pass with no final response, you do not have to wait any longer. The ombudsman's guidance is that if the insurer does not send a final response letter within eight weeks, or you are unhappy with the response, you can bring the complaint to the ombudsman². The same wording appears in the ombudsman's guidance on fraud markers and on personal accident insurance²¹.

If you do get a final response and disagree with it, the route is the same. You can escalate straight away. There is no requirement to write again to the insurer or to ask for a review.

The ombudsman looks at what happened and decides what is fair. In a case study about a written-off van, the insurer said in its final response letter that it had paid the correct value, and the customer asked the ombudsman to look at the settlement¹⁶. In vehicle repair complaints, the ombudsman checks whether the insurer reduced inconvenience, for example by offering a replacement vehicle, and may tell the insurer to compensate the customer for not having use of the vehicle for a period of time²⁰.

If you are unhappy with how a complaint has been handled, you can also complain about the complaint handling itself. The ombudsman can consider whether the insurer's process was fair, not just whether its decision was right.

Six months to take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service

Once you have a final response, you normally have six months from its date to take the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service³. The ombudsman's own guidance repeats the figure: you will need to make a complaint within 6 months from the date on your final response¹¹. Its video transcript for consumers says you must contact it within 6 months from getting the final response from the business²².

The six-month rule is consistent across the ombudsman's consumer pages. It applies to complaints about car finance commission, where you have six months from the date of that response to refer your complaint if you are not satisfied with it²³. It applies to complaints about lenders, where you have six months from the date of your lender's final response²⁴. It applies to complaints about debt collecting and about goods and services bought on credit²⁵.

If the insurer never sends a final response, the six months does not start. The ombudsman's guidance is that you can bring the complaint after eight weeks without a final response². In that situation, the deadline runs from the point at which the insurer should have responded.

Once the ombudsman has your complaint, most cases are dealt with within six months, though it may take longer if the case is complicated²⁷. The service is free to consumers⁴.

What does deadlock with my insurer mean?

Deadlock is the point at which you and the insurer cannot agree and the insurer has given its final answer. In insurance, the final response letter is normally what marks that point, and it is what starts the six-month clock for the ombudsman.

Other sectors use a separate deadlock letter. In energy complaints, the Energy Ombudsman can accept a complaint within 12 months of a deadlock letter, and the complaint must be sent within 12 months of receiving the deadlock letter or final response from the supplier²⁸. If a company fails to respond to a request for a letter of deadlock within a reasonable period, say 14 days, you can take the complaint to the ombudsman anyway³⁰.

For insurance, you do not need to ask for a deadlock letter. The final response letter does the same job. If the insurer has not sent one within eight weeks, you can escalate without it.

Do I have to complain in writing to my insurer?

No. You can complain by phone, in writing, by email or in branch. But putting the complaint in writing makes the eight-week clock easier to prove and gives you a record if you later go to the ombudsman.

Which? advises appealing to your insurer first, clearly explaining what went wrong from your perspective and how you would like the problem resolved¹⁰. Its guidance suggests heading the complaint 'Complaint', including dates and the names of people you spoke to, and stating the outcome you want¹⁰.

If you are complaining about a claim decision, template letters can help you set out your case. Which? publishes a letter rejecting your insurer's offer on a claim, which asks for a revised offer within 14 days³¹, and a letter to refute your insurer's rejection of a claim, which asks for reimbursement of a stated sum³². These are starting points, not a substitute for the insurer's own complaints process.

If you use a claims management company, the timetable is different. The FCA regulated claims management company has up to eight weeks to respond to your complaint³³. If you are unhappy with its response, you can take the complaint to the Claims Management Ombudsman, which you must contact within six months of the claims management company's final response⁹.

Where to get free help

Several organisations give free, impartial help with insurance complaints.

• Financial Ombudsman Service. The free service that looks at complaints about insurers and other financial firms. It can be contacted once the insurer has had eight weeks or has sent a final response².
• MoneyHelper. The government-backed service offering free guidance on money matters, including complaints⁸.
• Citizens Advice. Free, independent advice on consumer and financial problems, including whether a financial service has followed the rules¹⁰.
• Which?. Consumer guidance on how to complain about an insurance company, including template letters¹⁰.

If your complaint is about a different type of firm, the same eight-week and six-month structure often applies. Lenders have eight weeks to respond to your complaint²⁴, and claims management companies have up to eight weeks³³. The ombudsman route is the same.

The two deadlines that matter: eight weeks for the insurer, six months for the ombudsman.