An analysis carried out by FACUA-Consumers in Action has revealed that up to 40 brands, all belonging to insurance companies, do not comply with current legislation, so that they do not have a free telephone number for customer service, whether they are customers or not. customers.
For this reason, the organization has filed a battery of complaints with the General Directorate of Consumer Affairs of the Ministry, as well as with the consumer protection authorities of the various autonomies; given that 9 out of 10 companies in this sector skip the law that requires them to have free consumer service telephone numbers.

Only 5 of those analyzed comply with the regulations
FACUA has carried out an analysis of the web pages of up to 45 brands of insurance companies. Of all of them, only 5 comply with the legislation: DKV, Direct Seguros, Elma, Ocaso and Reale.On the opposite side, there are up to 40 entities that violate it in some way. In fact, up to 12 do not provide any type of free line for this attention to consumers. Instead, they have exclusive numbering for this communication “which involves an outlay for the user”, as stated in the FACUA statement. These 12 companies are Allianz Direct, Chapka Assurances, Clinicum Salud, Divina Seguros, Europ Assistance, Hello Auto, Met Life, MGS, Onyx Seguros, Pont Group, Vital Seguros and Zurich.
In addition, the remaining 20 provide free numbers, “but restrict them to the development of certain specific procedures, thus breaching the duty to provide a free line that guarantees the attention of users in a broad sense.” These companies correspond to Aegon, Arag, Asisa, Balumba, Catalana Occidente, Drive&Win, Cigna, Ergo Seguros, Expertia Seguros, Fiatc, Generali Seguros, Genesis, Liberty Seguros, Mapfre, Qualitas Auto, Regal, Sanitas, SegurCaixa Adeslas, Seguros Bilbao and Verti. Of all of them, 11 express banners on their web pages where they only communicate geographic numbers, so that consumers can get in touch through them.
Up to two brands in the sector, Appreciation Insurance and AXA, have free numbers, but these are found on their websites through “static banners announcing geographic prefix lines, aimed at generating confusion for consumers in order for them to contact through numbering with cost”. Therefore, they have also been denounced.
To conclude the report, Facua has also counted 6 companies that have free telephone numbers on their website, but also have others to carry out certain procedures that have an expense.These firms are Allianz, Caser, Helvetia, Linea Directa, Mutua Madrilena and Vivaz.

What legislation is violated

Last December, theArticle 21 of Royal Legislative Decree 1/2007, of November 16, through which the consolidated text of the General Law for the Defense of Consumers and Users and other complementary laws enters into force: “In the cases of services of a basic nature of general interest, the companies providing them must have, in any case, a free consumer service telephone number For these purposes, the supply of water, gas, electricity will be considered basic services of general interest. , financial and insurance, postal, air, rail and road transport, health protection, sanitation and waste, as well as those that are legally determined.
In addition, for all those companies that do not have basic services of general interest, the law establishes that “in the event that the employer makes a telephone line available to consumers and users in order to communicate with him in relation to the contract entered into , the use of such a line may not suppose for the consumer and user a cost higher than the cost of a call to a fixed geographic or standard mobile telephone line .On the other hand, if a special rate line is used, the company must provide “along with the information on said special rate telephone line and under equal conditions, information on an alternative geographic or mobile number.”
FACUA reminds consumers that they can claim payment of amounts for making calls to special rate lines.

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