What no one may do to you when selling you insurance

In short

False deadlines, “only with us” for rights the law gives, pressure to sign before you leave and unwanted calls that never stop are always forbidden.

• Misleading is forbidden too: illustrations presented as promises, “guaranteed” that is not, hidden costs.
• Stop, ask for it in writing, and if you signed, you have 30 days on life policies.
• Report it to the insurer, the Insurance Companies Control Service or the Consumer Protection Service.

Most advisors work properly. But because insurance is often signed in a single meeting, it is worth knowing what is forbidden. Two laws protect you: the consumer protection law, which bans unfair commercial practices in every sale, and the insurance business law, which requires anyone distributing insurance to act honestly, fairly and professionally, in your best interests (Article 394Γ).

Always forbidden

Law 112(I)/2021 has a list of practices that are unfair in all circumstances (Annex I, from the European directive 2005/29/EC). In an insurance sale, the most common are:

What you hear	What the law says
“The offer ends today, you must sign now.”	A false statement that something will be available only for a very limited time, to make you decide immediately, is forbidden (Part A, item 7).
“Only with us do you get 30 days to think again.”	Presenting rights the law gives you as a special feature of the offer is forbidden (Part A, item 10). The 30 days apply to every individual life policy.
“The check-up is free”, when afterwards you pay.	Describing something as “free” or “without charge” when you must pay anything beyond the unavoidable cost is forbidden (Part A, item 20).
“We are not leaving here until we close this.”	Giving the impression you cannot leave before signing is an aggressive practice (Part B, item 1). In your home, if you ask them to leave or not to come back, they must respect it (item 2).
Calls and messages that never stop.	Persistent and unwanted approaches by phone, e-mail or other means are an aggressive practice (Part B, item 3).

Misleading: what is said and what is left out

Beyond the list, the law forbids any practice that gives you a false picture of the price, the benefits or the risks, or that hides something you need in order to decide. In insurance this means, for example:

• presenting an illustration of future amounts as a promise, when it is an example based on assumptions,
• calling something “guaranteed” that is not guaranteed in the policy,
• not mentioning what you lose if you stop in the first years,
• telling you insurance is “compulsory” when it is not, or that you must take it from a particular provider (see the mortgage article),
• presenting a sales pitch as “information” or a “survey”: marketing communications must be clearly identifiable as such.

What to do

1. Stop the conversation. Say you will think about it. A sound proposal will still stand tomorrow. Do not sign anything under pressure.
2. Ask for everything in writing. Whatever you were promised verbally, ask to see it in writing. What is not written does not count.
3. If you signed, you have 30 days. On individual life policies you can withdraw without explaining why.
4. Report it. A written complaint to the insurer or the intermediary. For an intermediary’s conduct, the Insurance Companies Control Service; for unfair practices, the Consumer Protection Service; for a dispute with the insurer, the Financial Ombudsman. See who to contact.

If someone asks for money to a personal account, passwords or card details, it is not a bad sale: it may be fraud. See how to check who you are dealing with.

Questions worth asking

• Where is what you are telling me written? Can I see it in the document?
• What is guaranteed in the policy, and what is only an example?
• If I wait a week, what exactly changes?

What you can do now

• Never sign on the same day something you heard of for the first time.
• Keep notes: date, who, what was said.
• If you want no more calls, say so clearly and in writing.

General information, not legal advice. For your own case the text of the law and the terms of your policy apply; if something is unclear, ask for a written answer.

Every policy has its own terms. What we write here is general information, not advice; for your own case, what your policy says applies, and it is worth confirming it in writing with your insurer.

Read also: Insurance scams: how to check who you are dealing with · How to check an advisor is registered, and where to complain · Before you sign: what you are entitled to receive in writing

AVRASTRO is not an insurer.

Part of the series “Your rights as a policyholder”. Start with the 30-day right of withdrawal.