A consumer from the Wels-Land district received unpleasant mail from his homeowners insurance company on December 1st. In it, the VAV insurance company canceled the contract on January 1, 2024 – for economic reasons, as it was said. The contract would normally have run until January 1, 2029.
The Upper Austrian Chamber of Labor (AKOÖ) confirms that this is not an isolated case. “Consumers keep coming forward to cancel their insurance, usually with attractive conditions,” says Ulrike Weiß, head of consumer protection at AKOÖ.
Since the consumer advocates might not see any reason for termination in this specific case, the man complained to the insurance company. She withdrew the termination. She said the letter was regarding an amicable solution. According to AKOÖ, this was neither stated in the letter of termination nor was there such an agreement. “If an insurance contract was concluded for a limited period until 2029, it cannot be properly terminated by the insurance company before it expires,” it says. There was also no extraordinary right of termination, for example following an event of damage.
Finally, when withdrawing the termination notice, the VAV pointed out that damage had been reported in 2021, which resulted in two payments. The next time a claim is submitted, the insurance company will react once more.
