M&s home contents insurance beware

GinnyBubbles

We're insured with M&S and have been for a few years and have never claimed, until i knocked and broke our Tiffany Lamp which was a gift. I phoned my insurance company asking could i claim for repair rather than new and i was told it wasn't covered as it wasn't listed in the policy . Apparently, if an item isn't listed as covered, OR not covered, then it comes under Not covered. To be sure of an item being covered you must list all items individually and get M&S to agree otherwise you're not covered. I will be cancelling my policy today and at least i've learnt something ! I'm so upset i've broken it though, not the money, sentimental value.

dacouch

What is the approximate value of the Tiffiny Lamp?

lisyloo

If the item is below the "single item limit" then it should be covered.
If it's above that limit e.g. £1500, then you would need to specify it.

If you want a policy without this hassle, then Hiscox have a single item limit of £15K which should suit the vast majority of households.

GinnyBubbles

Hi, thanks for your time, the value is £450.

dacouch

In that case they are giving you the wrong information, their policy wording and website is a bit missleading however I have found the following relevant parts.

This is from advice on what you will need pre quote
What you’ll be asked for

• The name and date of birth of all applicants
• An email address
• Your address and postcode
• The type of property, what it’s built of and when it was built
• Details of any claims you, or anyone living with you, have made in the last 6 years (including dates and the amount and type of damage)
• A description and the value of any items in your home worth £4,000 or more

http://money.marksandspencer.com/insurance/home-insurance/get-quote-and-buy/

This is from their FAQs

You have no sums insured, what does this mean?

Most home and contents policies either ask you to state the total rebuilding cost of your home and the total value of your contents, or they set an upper limit. In the event of a claim these values act as maximum limits so you may be underinsured and therefore not receive the full value of your claim. Also if you overstate your values by mistake, you will pay too much premium. We do not have these limits, apart from liability and cash cover, and therefore you cannot be underinsured.


and also


What are inner limits?

Home insurance policies generally have limits on particular types of items such as freezer contents, bicycles and belongings in the garden, outbuildings or cars. The only inner limits on our policy are £500 for cash, £2m for property owners and personal liability, £10m for domestic employees liability and £40,000 for tenants liability


http://money.marksandspencer.com/insurance/home-insurance/faq/

This is their definition of valuables from the policy wording

Valuables – are Jewellery (including
costume jewellery), articles of or
containing gold, silver or other precious
metals, cameras (which includes video
cameras, camcorders and digital
cameras), binoculars, watches, furs,
paintings and other works of art, and
collections of stamps, coins and medals.

Note I do not think a Tiffiny Lamp would come under this definition as it is more of a curio or antique, I don't believe it would be classed as a work of art

http://money.marksandspencer.com/pdf/HIPolicy.pdf (Page 4)

They only seem to restrict cover on Valuables for certain things eg damage during removals. They do not seem to specify a single article limit for them in the policy, if they did it would typically be circa £2500 with most Insurers.

So based on the above the damage to your Lamp (Assuming you have Accidental Damage Cover) should be covered under the policy. The Insurer is Axa and their claims department can often be a bit hit and miss. Try ringing back and asking for a superviser and go through the claim, if they still say its not covered ask them to explain exactly why and tell you where in the policy wording it states its not covered

GinnyBubbles

Thank you so much, i rang again and i'm waiting for someone to call me back, unfortunately this took three attempts as they just wouldn't budge from the attitude of it doesn't fit into the policy wording so it's not covered. I appreciate your kind help. Ali.

dacouch

The Insurer is Axa who can be either very good or very bad.

A £450 lamp would not be a problem on any policy I know of and is certainly covered on the M&S policy. Its a shame as you no doubt bought the policy because of M&S's reputation.

Speak to a Superviser (Ask for their name and position in the company at the start of the call) and ask them to explain exactly why they think its not covered and then explain to them why you think its covered and await their explanation. Be polite but firm.