Pearl Assurance And Mrs Winifred Black

EDM number 1384 in 1994-95, proposed by David Hinchliffe on 11/07/1995.

That this House notes with concern Pearl Assurance plc's treatment of the case of 88 years old Mrs Winifred Black of Wakefield, in respect of their honouring life assurance policies, whereby they destroyed collecting books relating to an insurance policy taken out by her husband, the late Mr Albert Black, whilst processing enquiries from Mrs Black and her son Mr Alan Black, into non payment of the policy; further notes that the company lost the original policy documents presented by the family and also made serious errors in their accounts of transactions with the Blacks; finds the failure of Pearl Assurance to honour this policy deplorable; regrets the inability of the Insurance Ombudsman Bureau to bring about a resolution of this complaint; and calls upon the Government to establish an ombudsman system, independent of the insurance industry, whose decisions are binding on all such companies and to undertake a speedy investigation into Mrs Black's case.

This motion has been signed by a total of 30 MPs.