Standard Insurance wins ombudsman award for consumer excellence

Standard Bank’s insurance company, Standard Insurance Limited, has been awarded the Isabel Jones Ukusizana award by the ombudsman for short-term insurance, topping the group of 52 companies considered.

The award recognises the insurer’s dedication to consumer excellence, with a focus on the insurer’s commitment to rapid resolution of complaints lodged with the ombudsman by customers.

Specific criteria include the insurer’s speed of response to such complaints, thoroughness in handling complaints, degree of co-operation with the ombudsman’s office in resolving complaints and disputes, the application of equity and fairness, and the number of times the ombudsman has had to overturn a claim rejection by an insurer.

“We do a thorough investigation of each customer claim and provide our customers with detailed reasons if we are obliged to reject a claim, so the ombudsman’s office is in a position to see very quickly from the information we provide whether or not our decision has been reasonable,” says Denise Shaw, Managing Director of Standard Insurance Limited.

“In addition, our staff are highly skilled and experienced. They have in-depth knowledge of the industry, all relevant legislation, and consumer needs. Therefore, they tend not to make the kind of errors that would cause the ombudsman to have to overturn a rejection in order to protect the consumer.

“In fact, we’re so inherently focused on protecting the consumer that we pro-actively look for reasons to pay rather than reject claims. The ombudsman can therefore see that we’re extraordinarily diligent in applying the principles of equity and fairness that are the cornerstone of his obligation to champion consumer rights.”

As one of the smaller short-term insurers covering home, vehicle, legal assist, accident and health insurance, Standard Insurance Limited manages close to one million policies. Of the claims made annually, less than 1% are referred by the customer to the ombudsman.

“For us, insurance is protection of the consumer’s assets. So, everything we do is based on finding reasonable ways to pay our customer’s claims,” says Ms Shaw.