East West Insurance Company Ltd (“EWIC”), a UK-based insurance company, entered administration on 12 October 2020. As a result, it is no longer paying claims.
To read more about how FSCS handles insurance claims, visit our 'Failed insurance companies - what happens next?' page.
FSCS declared the firm in default on 12 October 2020 and we’re stepping in to protect as many EWIC policies sold to UK individuals and small businesses as possible. We’re working closely with EWIC’s joint administrators, Ernst & Young, as well as the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
We will continue to update this page as we have more information, and you can sign up for updates by email for the latest news by visiting the Latest Updates tab on this page.
We’ll be in contact with affected customers directly in due course, by post or email.
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19 Apr, 2022
Since East West Insurance Company (EWIC) entered administration, FSCS has been working closely with the joint administrators to fund valid claims made against EWIC insurance policies. Up until Tuesday 5 April 2022, we have paid just under £7m in claims costs.
Typically, if a policyholder makes a successful claim on an insurance policy, their insurer takes over their rights so that they can try and recover money from a person or business who they believe was at fault.
If FSCS funds a successful claim because the insurer has failed, the policyholder’s rights go to FSCS instead. This gives us the legal right to try and recover the compensation we have paid.
We have published the terms of the various FSCS determinations below.
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11 Dec, 2020
The Joint Administrators’ Statement of Proposals and related documents are now available on the Administrators’ website - East West Insurance Company Limited Administration.
UK-based EWIC entered administration on 12 October 2020.
The firm had a portfolio of 10-15 year structural defects insurance policies. These transferred from Zurich Insurance plc in 2018. The structural defects policies were issued to home buyers by Zurich.
Richard Barker & Simon Edel of EY were appointed as joint administrators of EWIC. FSCS will work closely with them to ensure all eligible policyholders affected by the failure are protected.
On 10 May 2021 Armour Group stopped managing EWIC’s claims handling functions. Weightmans LLP has been selected as the Company’s new claims handler. The contact phone number remains the same, the email address is team@east-west-insurance.com.
Further information can be found at www.ey.com/en_uk/eastwestinsurance.
Contact information for EWIC policyholders: email enquiries@east-west-insurance.com, tel: 0333 4000 393.
FSCS
Contact us by phone on the number below, or via the contact form on the Contact us page.
Q&A
FSCS is working closely with EWIC’s joint administrators, Ernst & Young – as well as the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority – to understand the impact of the insolvency.
The firm had a portfolio of 10- to 15-year structural defects insurance policies, designed to protect against latent defects in newly-built, converted or refurbished residential developments. These structural defects policies were issued to home buyers by Zurich, and the policies were subsequently transferred from Zurich Insurance plc to EWIC on 31 March 2018. Most of the claims against EWIC relate to structural defects policies covering issues such as defective cladding.
FSCS aims to protect most UK-based customers of EWIC who are individuals policyholders or small business policyholders with an annual turnover of less than £1m. Learn more about FSCS protection rules and limits.
You can find updates on the administration at www.ey.com/en_uk/eastwestinsurance or you can contact the joint administrator’s office at eastwestinsurance@uk.ey.com.
Weightmans LLP is now coordinating and handling claims on behalf of EWIC.
Weightmans LLP and EWIC’s joint administrators will engage with contractors carrying out repair work, and hopefully any disruption to that work is kept to an absolute minimum.
Please direct all claims enquiries to team@east-west-insurance.com or call 0333 4000 393.
We are working with Weightmans LLP and the joint administrators to identify which claims will benefit from FSCS protection.
If you have an eligible building guarantee claim, we are pleased to say that it will now be compensated at 100%, instead of the historical 90%.
This is due to an amendment to the Policyholder Protection Rules on 8 October 2020, which increased protection for customers.
Temporary accommodation providers have been paid in advance to continue to provide their services. The joint administrators will contact them to ensure there’s alternative accommodation on an ongoing basis for those who need it.
The administrators should have contacted those in temporary accommodation by now. If you are in temporary accommodation and have questions, contact team@east-west-insurance.com or call 0333 4000 393. Please have the following information to hand:
- Full name
- Address of property undergoing repair
- Contact details (telephone number & email address)
- Brief summary of your situation
Yes, all unexpired EWIC structural defects policies remain valid.
Weightmans LLP is coordinating and handling claims on behalf of EWIC (in administration). Please direct all claims enquiries to team@east-west-insurance.com or call 0333 4000 393.
Your policy documents might refer to ‘Zurich Insurance plc’ rather than ‘East West Insurance Company Ltd’. Zurich Insurance plc transferred this portfolio of structural defects policies to EWIC in March 2018.
You should have received a letter from EWIC at that time notifying you of the purchase and providing you with updated contact details. If you have any questions on this point you should contact enquiries@east-west-insurance.com or call 0333 4000 393.
We offer protection to individuals or small businesses, with less than £1 million turnover for the 12 months preceding the start of the insurance policy they are claiming against.
You can check whether your revenue meets our eligibility criteria by looking at your company accounts that show Turnover. This may also be referred to as Revenue, Income or Sales. It's usually found in the first line of the ‘Trading and Profit and Loss Account’ section of your annual financial statement. Make sure to check company financial records that cover at least the 12 months preceding the start date of the insurance policy. That might mean you need look at two separate years of records.
There is likely to be more eligibility criteria, so we will update this page as we know more, and we will make customers aware of these criteria too.
Find updates on the administration at www.ey.com/en_uk/eastwestinsurance or you can contact the joint administrator’s office at eastwestinsurance@uk.ey.com.