Hyderabad: The Hyderabad District Consumer Forum has ordered Aegon Religare Life Insurance Company Limited to refund a city resident his policy amount and compensation for Rs 2 lakh.
Jubilee Hills resident Desu Ashok Kumar won his case at the forum which ordered the insurer to pay Rs 7.4 lakh.
Mr Kumar told the forum that he had taken an insurance policy on October 31, 2010, with a single premium of Rs 5 lakh which he believed would cover the entire period of the policy. He later found that the terms and conditions explained by the company representative and the terms printed on the policy documents were different.
He cancelled the policy but got back only 20 per cent of the amount, or Rs 1,00,214.63, from Aegon Religare after three years on August 31, 2013. He sent back the cheque in protest and filed a complaint with the consumer forum alleging deficiency of service.
The insurer contended that Mr Kumar had signed on the proposal and the policy was issued as per the details submitted by him. The complainant had not approached them with any request for ‘free look’ cancellation, Aegon Religare said.
The insurer failed to examine the agent who issued the policy to the complainant. Another allegation that Mr Kumar made was regarding the alleged forging of his signature, for which the insurance company did not give a proper explanation.
The forum noted that if Aegon Religare had examined the agent, the facts of the case would have come out.
The company had no right to deduct the surrender charges as it amounted to unfair trade practices, the consumer forum ruled and ordered the company to not only refund the amount but also pay compensation.
Aegon Religare was ordered to pay Mr Kumar Rs 5 lakh with 18 per cent interest per annum from August 16, 2010, till the date of realisation, Rs 2 lakh for the mental agony and hardships caused and Rs 40,000 towards costs.
