please help a confused first timer! am i covered for this?

happypixie

I have contents insurance with Marks and Spencers.
I am due to leave my rented flat this month and during our time here, our cats have scratched up the carpet in a few corners of one of the rooms leaving good sized holes! :mad: (they were kittens when we first moved in and couldn't control their claws like they can now!)

also, i have just noticed today a small chip & crack in the corner of the kitchen window. i genuinely have absolutely no idea how or when that happened, nor does my ex boyfriend (who was sharing the flat with me) - it is an inside crack and not an outside one, i can tell from the way the glass is.

are these things covered by my contents insurance?? i have never claimed before, so have no idea how it works. if i claim off my insurance, will i be able to get the damage deposit back when i leave the flat? im very confused!

any help gratefully received!

dacouch

I assume the carpets are your landlords property and not yours, in which case you cannot claim under your policy for this. There is a slim chance you could claim under the Tenants Liability Section if the policy includes this.

The Window will come under Building Insurance which the Landlord will have covered. I believe (Someone may correct me on this) That the landlord can only charge you for damage if they can prove it was intentional so you can probably get away with the chip in the window.

Probably best to ring M&S claims and ask them if you can claim for these items

advent1122

dacouch wrote: »

Probably best to ring M&S claims and ask them if you can claim for these items

Hmmmm. Now do I actually ring the company who I have the insurance policy with and get the facts or do I go on an internet forum and get conflicting advice.
Deciscions, decisions.
Why people ask these questions rather than phone the company is beyond me.

geri1965_2

Both of them should be covered under the landlords building policy, but he may not wish to pursue a claim for them - that's up to him.

He may withhold some of your deposit to pay for the cost of repairs - it depends what your tenancy agreement says.

One of my cats ripped the wallpaper to shreds in a rented house once, but the agency didn't appear to notice and didn't take it from our deposit (although they did charge me for other things that weren't my fault, but that's a different story).

geri1965_2

advent1122 wrote: »

Hmmmm. Now do I actually ring the company who I have the insurance policy with and get the facts or do I go on an internet forum and get conflicting advice.
Deciscions, decisions.
Why people ask these questions rather than phone the company is beyond me.

If you have nothing helpful to say, don't say anything at all. It's not unusual for insurance companies to give out incorrect information - I was told my laptop wasn't covered for storm damage when I phoned mine, however, on reading through the policy document carefully I disagreed with them and they agreed to pay out when I phoned them again.

happypixie

advent1122 - i just wanted to see where i stood before i took my next step, i like to go into things prepared so that i don't just get talked down to or told the wrong thing. I hope you feel satisfied with your comment but like geri1965 said, it would probably be best if you kept your unhelpful comments to yourself..

Thank you very much for the other replies, I will call M&S today, but i think it's just going to come out of my damage deposit, which really makes things difficult because i needed that to use as my deposit for my new house! .... a word of warning to people, never get kittens in a rented house!

dacouch

I hope it goes well happypixie.

Unfortunately there are some people on MSE who do decide to answer peoples questions but place themself in judgement of other people. This is not what MSE is about, its about being a community and helping each other...

Loss adjuster me thinks...

geri1965_2

dacouch wrote: »

Loss adjuster me thinks...

What is that supposed to mean? I am a loss adjuster, actually, and my post was intended to be helpful.

dacouch

geri1965 wrote: »

What is that supposed to mean? I am a loss adjuster, actually, and my post was intended to be helpful.

I was agreeing with your answer about if you have nothing constructive to say don't say it.

I was saying I would not be surprised if advent1122 is a loss adjuster

McKneff

Why dont you just replace the carpet yourself. If the landlord does it, he will prbably charge you top dollar.

geri1965_2

dacouch wrote: »

I was agreeing with your answer about if you have nothing constructive to say don't say it.

I was saying I would not be surprised if advent1122 is a loss adjuster

Because loss adjusters are unhelpful?