FUNERAL insurance customers may be eligible for refunds after overpaying on their premiums.
TAL Direct will offer $900,000 in refunds to 1200 Insuranceline funeral insurance customers after the company failed to switch off annual cost of living increases to premiums and cover after customers reached the age of 75 for the Over 50s/55s Insurance Plans and 80 for the Insuranceline Funeral Plan.
In a statement, TAL said it had been working closely with the Australian Security and Investments Commission (ASIC) after finding the error.
“We have since undertaken a remediation program for impacted customers, which involves contacting each one to advise them of their options, in order to ensure every affected customer is properly reimbursed,” the statement says.
“We understand that, in particular for older customers who hold funeral insurance, the premiums can represent a considerable expense - and that is why we work to build our products in a way that is considerate of this. In any instance where we identify that an error has occurred, our aim is always to rectify it as quickly as possible.”
The company reported the error to ASIC immediately after discovering it.
Affected customers can either choose a refund of the portion of premiums overpaid or to maintain the higher level and higher premiums and not claim the refund.
Policy holders who choose the refund will have their insurance cover reduced to the level it would have been at if the error had not occurred.
TAL will also refund affected policy holders whose policies have lapsed.
The affected policies were sold to new customers between July 2003 and June 2013.
- Concerned TAL customers can contact the company on 1300 303 781.
