Motor insurance complaints climbed by almost 12% in the first quarter of 2026. The product remained the UK's most complained-about insurance line.
The finding comes from Insurance DataLab's latest analysis of Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) data. The analysis also found upheld rates falling across most major business lines during the period.
Car and motorcycle insurance generated 3,519 new complaints between January and March, up from 3,145 a year earlier. The product drew more than double the complaints of buildings insurance, the next most complained-about line, with travel insurance in third.
Buildings insurance complaints fell by more than 6% year-on-year to 1,618, while home insurance complaints dropped 6% to 393. Travel insurance complaints rose 5% to 1,106.
The figures sit within a wider decline in complaints reaching the ombudsman. The FOS received 47,300 complaints in the final quarter of 2025, down from 68,400 a year earlier after a pause on motor finance commission complaints. The uphold rate across all other sectors stood at 31% for the quarter once those cases were excluded.
Pet insurance complaints fell by 13% compared with the first quarter of 2025. The sector had recorded rising complaint volumes in recent years, so the decline marked the sharpest shift in the data.
The proportion of pet insurance complaints upheld in favour of consumers dropped from 52% to 38%, a fall of 14 percentage points. Fewer complaints and a lower upheld rate point to a possible improvement in customer outcomes within the sector.
Motor insurance recorded a four-percentage-point improvement in its upheld rate, down to 34%. Buildings and travel insurance both improved by three percentage points, to 37% and 34% respectively.
Insurance DataLab co-founder Matt Scott said "larger business lines will naturally attract more complaints because of their size, but changes in complaint volumes and upheld rates can provide an early indication of emerging issues or improvements in customer outcomes."
Scott linked the findings to wider scrutiny facing UK insurers. He referenced the Which? super-complaint and an ongoing House of Lords inquiry into consumer insurance regulation.
Which? filed the super-complaint against the home and travel insurance markets in September 2025. The consumer group said the claims process can be more distressing for some customers than the incidents that led to their claims. It cited claims acceptance rates of 63% for buildings insurance and 80% for travel insurance, against 99% for motor claims.
Scott told the House of Lords Financial Services Regulation Committee in June 2026 that 32% of storm-damage claims resulted in a settlement. He said 46% were declined and 19% were abandoned before reaching an outcome. He argued that many declined claims stem from customers misunderstanding their cover rather than unfair claims handling.
The inquiry's fourth and fifth evidence sessions in late June 2026 featured the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA). The ABI said insurers paid close to £12 billion in motor claims in 2024. BIBA said its members place about £150 billion of premium annually across personal and commercial lines.
Fewer complaints have reached the ombudsman, and fewer have been upheld. That combination, Scott said, "suggests customer outcomes may be moving in the right direction after a challenging few years."
The Q1 2026 data set spans ten business lines, from motor and buildings insurance to pet, travel and household warranty cover. Insurers and brokers will likely watch whether the improvements seen in pet and buildings insurance extend to motor cover. Motor insurance remains the sector's largest source of consumer complaints.
