From momentum to metropolitan

My dad was taken for a ride by two insurance providers, that is momentum and metropolitan life. He opened up a funeral cover with momentum, uninformed metropolitan took over from momentum. Debit order reference was the only way he knew that his policy was no longer under momentum. He called to inquire as to why this happened, "metropolitan is your new service provider" they said, nothing more to provide clarity. The debit order stopped this year March 2020 and metropolitan was called to as why, they said the finance department probably did not schedule one. Months passed and still no debit orders. He was then informed that his policy has lapsed, to continue he needs to pay outstanding premiums. This all happened during the lockdown, knowing people wont have the funds to replenish the outstanding fees, as a result the policy will be closed and not premiums will be paid back. Or are they not? I would like to hear your feed back before taking this to the Ombudsman.