New Contents Insurance Policy immediately following large claim . . . help please!

Lindy_Loo_3

Hello again

For those of you who have seen my previous posts, I've got another question.

When we've got the claim settled (currently looking about 1/2 - 2/3 of coverage payout following massive water damage) and moved into our new house, where is the best place to get insurance?

I've looked at the price comparison site but the majority of the companies won't offer cover and I think it's because I have disclosed that we have made a claim "in the last 5 years" (for the first time ever might I add) and estimated its value as requested.

Those that do offer cover is at a rate of nearly 2.5 x what we are / were paying.

However there's no section to explain that these costs are completely recoverable from our landlord.

Is it just a case of "unlucky - that's how it works" or does anyone consider the fact that this is not our fault and our insurers are getting their money back from our landlord's insurers?

Thanks in advance.

dacouch

Its difficult to trnasfer Insurers when you have a large claim in the last 3 or 5 years so its generally best to stay with the same insurance company you had the claim with.

Why do you not want to stay with the same Insurer.

Lindy_Loo_3

I'm happy to stay with them (if they'll have me) but I assume I need a new policy?

We paid for the year in December but we won't be going back to the house that it was registered for as it's uninhabitable (we're literally moving 12 doors up from where we are now).. .. .. assumed (probably incorrectly) that once you make a claim you can't very well transfer the policy to a new address so you need a new policy??? Have I got that totally wrong?

dacouch

No with house insurance the policy will continue as so you can stay with Legal and General. They will probably increase your premium by between 10% and 20% at renewal for a couple of years until you get all of your no claims bonus back (You will lose some of your bonus). When / If Legal and general get their money back from your landlords insurance they will reimberse the extra premiums but it can take a very long time to get it back (If they do).

One thing you should do is get some of the cover for your contents transferred to your temporary accomadation. L&G often do this automatically under the policy section Contents Temporarily Removed but it is best to ring their underwritting department to ensure you have cover on your new property as you have already found out the unexpected can happen.

L&G will expect you to carry on paying your instalments as Insurance is seen as a contract and they have fulfilled their side of the contract by paying your claim. But as stated above the policy will continue.

It is normally recommended to stay with the company who paid your claim, after 3 or 5 years (Depending on how they word the question when you get a quote as to have you had any claims in the last 3/5 years) you can then transfer to a new insurer without the claim being an issue.

If I were you though I would try and avoid claiming for small claims for a couple of years until this claim is a few years old. When I say small claims I mean under around £150. As if you get another claim in the next couple of years your premium will go up quite a lot.

I hope this helps

Lindy_Loo_3

Wow that's a super answer - really helps clarify what we need to do. Thanks again dacouch, you've been an absolute star today.

dacouch

Your very lucky that L&G were the cheapest as you stumbled on to a good Insurer rather than a bad one.


You have probablly learned that its not always best to buy Insurance on price as you do not find out how good it is until you claim. Sometimes its better to pay a bit extra to have the best which is why we do not all drive around in Kia cars.

I'm a broker and would recommend when you get a chance transfer to a broker, sometimes its more expensive often its cheaper. But when you had a claim they would have sorted it all out for you and explained all of the problems you had here earlier. Unfortunately when you deal with these call centres the staff have very little knowledge of insurance so do not have the skills or time to help you when you really need it.

Good luck with the claim

Lindy_Loo_3

Well you've definitely sold me, as soon as I get the chance I'll definitely use a broker in future. . . . . the service will definitely outweigh the cost from now on.

Thank you again dacouch, I am honestly grateful for all the time you've given us today.

dacouch

No problems