Neighbours BBQ set fire to my shed...

cherrybee22

My neighbour had a BBQ in their garden and left the coals outside.
Their shed caught fire, which then spread to my shed. My shed will probably cost about £200 to replace, and the contents of the shed that were damaged were worth about £150. I thought that I would be able to claim off of their insurance as the fire started on their property, but my insurance company said that I have to make a claim with them, and then they will fight it out with my neighbours insurer. The problem is that my excess is £300 for building and £300 contents, which would mean I would have to pay out £600 for damage worth only about £350. My insurer says that I have to pay my excess and then if my neighbours insurer agrees to pay out then I get it back. But then if they don't agree to pay out then I will be £600 out of pocket for an incident that was in no way my fault.
Does anybody know if there is anything else that I can do or have any advice?

MORPH3US

Assuming your neighbour is willing to admit liability, call up their insurance company and explain what has happened and deal with them direct.

My GF did this once with a car accident and they paid up quickly and even added an extra £75 for her troubles of not going through her insurer (who would of milked the other insurer for all it was worth to line their own pockets.

LinasPilibaitisisbatman

Your insurer is talking !!!!.

You have to notify them of the claim but dont need to claim through them. The downside is that it may be difficult if anyone kicks up hassle.

Write a letter to your neighbour documenting your losses and claim for compensation against him asking either he settle it or pass it to his insurer to settle.

mancitychick

This is how I understand it excess, please someone correct me if I am wrong. You wouldn't be £600 out if pocket, only £350. As the excess is the amount deducted before they pay out so as your excess is more than the claim. You wouldn't have to give your insurance co £300 you would just receive zero from them, same on building side. E.g. I had a claim for my bathroom the other year, (my excess is £100) the repair costs were £650 upon receipt of the estimate my insurance company sent me a cheque for £550 I didn't send them anything.

Also try what morpheus said as I presume it would be cheaper for your neighbours ins co to deal direct with you, than to deal with your ins co.

good luck

thelawnet

Your neighbour is totally liable through their negligence for damage to your property. You don't have to claim on your insurance at all. You could simply sue your neighbour for instance (not saying this is a good idea, but they are liable).

Just go through the neighbour's insurers - you have no reason to claim on your own insurance, and they'll use it as an excuse to whack up your premium.

There is no reason at all to talk to your insurer - your losses are not insured by them as the excess exceeds the cost of the damage, so there is no possible benefit in dealing with them.

brightonman123

i wouldnt make a claim as yet- see if neighbours are willing to buy you a new one direct, and compensate for contents.. better relations kept all round, alog with lower premiums for both!

geri1965_2

You do appear a little confused. Your claim is for £350 and your excess is £300. This means your insurers will pay you £50 and you will be out of pocket by £300 which you will need to pursue from your neighbours.

In these circumstances, since your neighbours were clearly negligent, I would agree with those who say pursue your whole claim directly against them.

I suggest going over to have a friendly chat and see how they want to deal with it, either personally or through their insurers (they may not necessarily have insurance).

brightonman123

or offer to get them a new one, for for £1,000 -

£400 for you, £400 for them, and £200 for the poor git who will have to build it, in this heat!

cherrybee22

geri1965 wrote: »

You do appear a little confused. Your claim is for £350 and your excess is £300. This means your insurers will pay you £50 and you will be out of pocket by £300 which you will need to pursue from your neighbours.

In these circumstances, since your neighbours were clearly negligent, I would agree with those who say pursue your whole claim directly against them.



I suggest going over to have a friendly chat and see how they want to deal with it, either personally or through their insurers (they may not necessarily have insurance).

I am confused, that's why I'm on here! My excess is £300 for the claim on buildings ( the shed itself) and £300 for contents, which means if I claim for both I will have to pay both (my insurance and loss adjuster have both told me this).

cherrybee22

I have now spoken to my neighbours insurance company, who refused to speak to me regarding the incident and told me that I have to go through my insurer.

mattymoo

cherrybee22 wrote: »

I have now spoken to my neighbours insurance company, who refused to speak to me regarding the incident and told me that I have to go through my insurer.

It is so frustrating to see someone given such duff advice by someone in the industry. I'll try and explain the problem.

If you claim through your own insurance you get new for old cover - a new shed and new tools etc. All fine and dandy but you have this big excess to pay that totally negates the claim.

If you claim from another persons insurers you are essentially claiming from your neighbour. If it went to court it would be "Cherrybee vs BBQ Numpty" and not "Cherrybee vs BBQ Numpty's insurers".

Now, the problem is, new for old does not apply. Your neighbour (and therefore his insurers) are only obliged to give you what the items were worth second hand. This will then put you back in the same FINANCIAL position as you were in before the fire. If the shed and contents were old, this could mean a very low payout.

It might therefore be worth going through your insurers, making sure you claim for everything, right down to the lock on the shed door and the crappy tin of paint you had in the corner of the shed. Even if the claim is £660 so you only get £10 at least everything will be new. The insurers will get their £10 back and you will get the £650 back from his insurers.

If there is no way you can make claim exceed £650 without resorting to fraud then you need to claim from the other person. This is where the duff info from his insurers comes in.

The call centre person you spoke to is used to dealing with policyholder claims everyday where the amount to be paid is determined by the policy documents. Clearly your claim, where third party legal liabilities have come into play, has taken them outside their comfort zone and they have told you to go to your own insurers. This is completely wrong.

Most insurance claims departments (motor, household, commercial etc) are split between "policyholder damage claims" and "third party damage and injury claims". The former is the easy stuff. You move onto the third party stuff after you've been doing the job a few years.

The departments will have different names depending on the company. RSA called theirs "Technical Claims" for instance. That is who you need to speak to. Go through a supervisor to begin with and find the correct contact point that way.