Aviva Income Protection

I've been paying premiums for 19years for which I got peace of mind should I be unable to work through illness.

Recently, after periods of extended sick leave, I claimed against my policy.

My health conditions make it impossible to do my job and I have supporting documentation from various health professionals.In fact I have subsequently had to give up my job for this reason.

Aviva seemed accommodating efficient in the first instance but I soon found this to be a smoke screen. I am firmly of the opinion that they had no intention of paying out on my claim and I am also firmly of the opinion that they routinely decline all claims in the hope that clients will give up. They obtained my medical records which were clearly incomplete (due to administrative error) compared with the information I gave in my claim form. They chose to make their decision on these incomplete records without any checking or following up whatsoever. This would give them the best chance of declining and a reference date. This decision was communiocated to me in an abrupt and , what I found to be, an intimidating fashion. It basically said - we don't have sufficient supporting information to uphold your claim and if you don't return to work in 3 months your policy (which I've been paying for for 19 years) will cease!!!!!!! When I provided them with the missing information they asked me to see an INDEPENDENT(??) Medical Examiner. The body of his report indicated that I had problems which, in my opinion, clearly made it impossible to do my job, but in his conclusion he said all the things which AVIVA's questions channelled him to say in their favour!!

They then applied some very strict conditions re 'generic duties' (which were not mentioned in my policy document which was not originally AVIVA) which could clearly be interpreted to AVIVA's advantage. Basically these rules and AVIVA's interpretation thereof can be used to decline virtually any own occupation claim.

Clearly I have complained but I have to allow AVIVA to respond before complaining to the Ombudsman.

I consider that there are thousands of people out there who genuinely think that they have a fallback should things go wrong ( which by definition is why we take out insurance ) but sadly will only find out that they are mistaken at an often stressful time when they are in need of reassurance and they encounter what I can only describe as a inflexible stone wall. This stone wall is called AVIVA a company which seems to think this is a game of tactics...put enough barriers in the way and the clients whose money they have been taking, sometimes for several years, will give up and go away.