Is there an ombudsman for insurance claims in France?
Issues with insurers over claims can take a long time to be settled
You must try to deal directly with your insurer before taking your complaint to a third party
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Reader Question: We submitted a claim on our home insurance three years ago, after a lorry accidentally dropped its load near our house and damaged our land, but we still have not been compensated. Can we make an official complaint?
An insurance ombudsman called the La médiation de l'assurance does exist in France, which can mediate both home and car insurance claims.
It can only get involved with claims against companies that are members of the group of insurers working with the mediator, although this essentially covers all major insurers in France. A full list can be found here.
It will not get involved in claims already being considered (either by a mediator or in court), nor those it deems baseless.
How do I file a complaint?
Before filing a complaint, you must have already written a formal letter of complaint to your insurance provider outlying your issues (the exact procedure should be detailed in your contract).
This is usually requires sending a lettre recommandée avec accusé de réception (registered post).
You must wait a year after sending this letter before filing your request with the mediator. In the meantime, your insurer may try to deal with the issue internally.
Read more: Car repair and insurance costs on the rise in France
If you fulfil these requirements, you can lodge a case by sending the file to the mediator.
This will need to include information about yourself, your contract, your insurance provider, and the situation – the full list can be found here.
The request can either be sent through the mediator’s official website, or you can send it via post (with the necessary documents included) to this address:
La Médiation de l’Assurance
TSA 50110
75441 Paris Cedex 09
An example letter you can adapt for your own needs is available here through the Institut national de la consommation.
Upon successfully lodging a complaint, the mediator has three months to find a solution between you and the insurer (although in complex cases this may be longer).
The solution does not have to be accepted, and can be rejected by either party.
If this happens, it is possible to take the situation to a court. You will likely be asked to show that you have tried to solve the issue both internally via your insurer and through the mediator before your case will be heard.
Similar rules are in place for contacting the energy ombudsman Sollen, which you can learn about here.
