An All-Party Parliamentary Group investigation on the Isle of Man has alleged the Insurance and Pensions Authority (IPA) knew about the mis-selling of insurance for 13 years and failed to protect people’s interests.
According to
Isle of Man Today, the report comes following an investigation into the alleged mis-selling of consumer goods guarantees by ScottishPower, which resulted in 625,000 people across the UK losing out on a total of £75 million in unpaid guarantees.
The report concluded that: “despite having full knowledge of the facts, the IPA appears to have done nothing to protect the interests of the insured despite having a legal obligation to do just that”.
In a written reply, Treasury Minister Eddie Teare said the IPA’s role was one of “oversight, rather than micromanagement”. He also revealed the IPA became aware of a potential problem in 2003, although no reference can be found to the matter being discussed.
ScottishPower set up PowerPlan Company Ltd in the Isle of Man to issue warranties on consumer appliances such as TVs and fridges in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The cashback warranties were sold on the promise that if a person didn’t claim within five years, they would get their deposit back. The scheme went under in 2004 following its sale to another retailer, leaving thousands of people unable to be paid back.
The report accused ScottishPower of deliberately using an opaque offshore structure to avoid paying tax and evade their liabilities.
ScottishPower have denied the allegations of mis-selling.
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