Thousands of Enterprise policyholders will finally receive compensation months after the insurer was declared insolvent.
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) said it will pay return of premiums to policyholders in the next few days after liquidator Freddie White of Grant Thornton terminated motor policies with Enterprise on October 26.
According to the FSCS, about 46,000 UK customers have motor insurance policies with Enterprise. White will handle the non-motor policies in the coming weeks.
The FSCS said the compensation is an automatic process and consumers need to do nothing to claim the payments.
“FSCS is now paying compensation to thousands of policyholders now that Enterprise motor policies are no longer valid. If you are not sure if you are eligible for compensation then speak to your insurance broker,” said chief executive Mark Neale.
Neale also urged Enterprise customers to check their policies and immediately find new cover if necessary.
As the troubled insurer enters liquidation, the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC) has launched a major investigation into Enterprise and its board of directors.
The GFSC said Enterprise’s insolvency raises “major questions” about the competency and integrity of the company board. The probe will focus on directors’ apparent failure to govern the insurer and report its real financial status.
The regulator said it may have been “significantly and consistently” misled by Enterprise about its true financial position. It described the company’s collapse as “unprecedented” that has resulted in “extensive losses with serious harm to consumers.”
“The GFSC is shocked by the extent of the collapse of Enterprise. We have reason to think we may have been seriously misled,” said Peter Taylor, the regulator’s director of legal enforcement and policy.
“The board is ultimately responsible for Enterprise’s actions,” Taylor added. “We consider it is critical for the reputation of Gibraltar to determine the extent to which any of the directors need to be held to account for what has occurred. We must get to the bottom of what has happened here and we will.”
Taylor said the GFSC has “deep and serious concerns” but he stressed that no findings or conclusions have been made yet.
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BIBA issues message to brokers after Enterprise collapse
Third of insolvent insurer’s clients still without cover
14,000 customers to get refund as Enterprise Insurance shuts down
