Complaints

Equitable Life procedure for policyholders on what you should do if you are dissatisfied with our service

If you wish to complain
We aim to provide the highest possible standards of service at all times.  However, we recognise that there may be occasions where you feel you have cause for complaint.

We also use comments from policyholders to help us to identify how our service can be improved.

Contacting us 
If you have not already advised us of your complaint, you may do so by contacting us by telephone, letter or fax at the following address:

Customer Relations Department
Walton Street
Aylesbury
Bucks. 
HP21 7QW

Tel: 0845 603 6771
Fax: 01296 386383

What you need to provide
If you have not already done so, it would assist our investigation if you could provide:

• Your policy number(s)
• A clear description of your concern or complaint
• Details of what you would like us to do to resolve it
• Copies of any relevant documents
  

What we will do
If we are unable to resolve your complaint by the end of the working day following receipt, we will send you a written acknowledgement within 5 working days of receipt. 

At this time, we will normally tell you the person who will be investigating your complaint, and we will ensure that they have the expertise and authority to be able to resolve the matter.

We will aim to complete our investigation, and write to inform you of our final decision, within 4 weeks of receipt of your complaint.  However, investigating complaints can sometimes take longer, so if our investigation is not completed within 4 weeks, we will write to tell you why, and when we expect it to be completed. 

If, after 8 weeks from receipt of your complaint, we have still not completed our investigation, we will again write to tell you why and when we expect to send you a final response.

If you are dissatisfied with our response or our handling of your complaint
If you have not received our final response within 8 weeks from receipt of your complaint, or you are dissatisfied with our decision, you will normally have the option to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). FOS are an independent adjudicator who can investigate and make decisions about unresolved disputes. Their contact details are as follows:

The Financial Ombudsman Service
South Quay Plaza
183 Marsh Wall
London
E14 9SR

Tel: 0845 080 1800
Fax: 020 7964 1001
www.financialombudsmanservice.org.uk

Please note that, if you wish to refer your complaint, you must do so within 6 months from the date of our final response.