Complaints

We want to give the best possible service always. If we disappoint you though, please let us know. By complaining, you’re giving us the opportunity to investigate and improve our service for everybody.

How to contact us

Get in touch by:

  • Email alexa@bequest.com
  • Live Chat www.bequest.com and www.bequest.app
  • Post Bequest, Runway East, 20 St. Thomas Street, London, SE1 9RS
  • Phone +44 020 3916 5433
What we need from you

We want to resolve your complaint as quickly as possible. To help us do this, please tell us:

  • What it is that’s gone wrong or disappointed you
  • What you’d like us to do to put things right

And give us:

  • Your name and email address
  • A phone number and the best time to contact you
What happens next

We’ll send you a prompt acknowledgement to let you know we’re looking into your complaint and telling you when you can expect to hear from us again. We’ll always try to respond within 8 weeks and will keep you updated on how we’re getting on up until then.

How we reach a resolution

Our complaint handler will look into why you’ve made your complaint and investigate what might have gone wrong. Then, within 8 weeks of the date you complained, they’ll send you either:

  1. A full response addressing your complaint and outlining your right to appeal with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) if you’re not satisfied with our answer, or
  2. An explanation of why we’re still not in a position to give you a full response. If this happens, we’ll let you know when we expect to be able to get back to you. And if you’re unhappy with the delay, you can at this point refer your complaint to FOS. We’ll mention this in our letter.

If we agree with your complaint, our response will include any suitable compensation where that’s appropriate. And if you accept any offer we make by way of putting things right, we’ll promptly follow through.

If we don’t agree with your complaint, we’ll fully explain why.

If you’re not satisfied with the outcome of your complaint, you can escalate it to FOS. However, please note that FOS can’t consider a complaint if you refer it to them in the following circumstances:

  1. More than 6 months after the date of our full response to you, or
  2. More than:
  • 6 years after the event you’re complaining about or (if later)
  • 3 years from the date you became aware (or ought reasonably to have become aware) that you had cause to complain

unless you referred your complaint to us or to FOS within that time and have a written acknowledgement or some other record showing your complaint was received.

What to do if you’re not satisfied

If you’re unhappy with our response and you’ve allowed us the 8-week timeframe, you can escalate your complaint to FOS at:

  • Email complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
  • Post The Financial Ombudsman, Exchange Tower, Harbour Exchange Square, London E14 9SR
  • Phone 0800 023 4567
  • Website www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

If you want to go to FOS, you must contact them within 6 months of our full response unless we’ve expressly said otherwise in our letter.

You can find information about FOS in the leaflet we’ll attach with our initial acknowledgment, or through the FOS website: http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/consumer-leaflet.htm

And you can find more on their services by visiting their website.

Frequently asked questions

FAQs, answered.

Select a question and all will be revealed.

Now. Death is unpredictable. You could die today or tomorrow. Having life insurance in place means your family are financially protected if the unexpected happens.

But that’s not the only reason. Life insurance gets more expensive the older you are. So, to get the best price, buy it now.

For example, £200,000 of cover until age 65 costs around £15 a month if you’re a 30-year-old non-smoker. It can be almost 3 times that amount when you’re 50.

We can’t tell you exactly how much you need – we’re all different. But you should consider choosing enough cover for ongoing living expenses, such as any outstanding mortgage, or a good few years in rent, and the monthly bills. Plus, any debts or loans you have, and don’t forget funeral costs.

You choose how long you want your policy to remain in place, anything from 5-40 years.

Most people choose to be covered until age 65, as that’s when they expect to retire. However, you can choose any age up to age 90, as long as you start the policy before your 65th birthday.

Level term is the most popular option. The amount of cover never changes. So, if you choose £200,000 of life insurance and you die in 10 years, we pay your family £200,000.

Decreasing term is designed to cover a mortgage. The payout amount decreases each month in line with your mortgage. The amount the cover goes down is equivalent to an annual interest rate of 8%. So, although the monthly cost you pay stays the same, decreasing cover is cheaper than level cover.

There are 2 options. You can either choose a joint life policy or 2 single life policies.

Although joint life policies tend to be a bit cheaper, they only pay out once. So, if one of you claims, the other is left with no life insurance in place.

The other option is for both partners to take out separate life insurance policies. That way if one of you dies your partner’s cover remains in place. Or if the relationship breaks down, you can both walk away with your policies intact. Separating a joint life policy isn’t always that easy.

We may be a new name in life insurance but we’re backed by some of the biggest names in the industry, so you can have complete trust in Bequest and our policies.

GenRe is one of the world’s leading reinsurers. They reinsure your policy so you can be confident we are always able to pay a claim.

Covéa is our underwriter. They have around 650,000 life and protection policies under administration in the UK.

Just call us on 020 3916 5433 and we’ll take it from there.

Check out our claims page for what to expect.

Life insurance is quite simple. If you die, or are diagnosed with a terminal illness, we pay out.

For a terminal illness claim, you’ll need a diagnosis from an attending consultant with the opinion that the illness is expected to lead to death within 12 months.

So, as long as you answered all the questions on your application honestly, you can sit back and relax safe in the knowledge you’re fully protected.

We know you were thinking it.

If Bequest were to close our doors, your policy is completely safe. Covéa, our partner, looks after the running of your policy today. So, they’d continue to do that if we were no longer around.

But we’re going nowhere.

We offer 3 Will options: Starter, Grow and Inherit.

  • Starter (£59): print-at-home will to sign and keep yourself.
  • Grow (£89): professionally printed, bound, and delivered. Sign it and return it to us to check and store for you. Uploading it into the National Will Registry is also included.
  • Inherit (£399): Everything in Grow, plus create a Trust to help complex situations and protect your estate against tax.

Check out our Wills page for all the details.

Absolutely.

All our Wills are written and checked by JP Estate Planning, an award-winning, UK-based, professional Will writer and estate planner.

So, what are you waiting for? Write your Will now.

There are lots of reasons why writing a Will is so important – such as naming your children’s guardians, protecting stepchildren, protecting the family home and making sure your inheritance is spent wisely.

Read our 6 reasons why a Will is well worth writing.

If you’d like us to check your signature and upload a copy to the National Will Register, you’ll need to print it, and post it to: JP Estate Planning Ltd, PO Box 6438, Milton Keynes, MK10 1LY.

We highly recommend sending this to us by recorded delivery with Royal Mail, so it’s safe and secure. You’ll need to pay for postage with the Starter package, but we cover it in Grow and Inherit packages.