mums home insurance wont cover electrical fault, advice please

skipsmum

My mum and dad have buidings and contents insurance with Churchill. They have never made a claim in 45 years.
Last week they put the dishwasher on and went to bed. They got up when the smoke alarm went off, and the dishwasher front panel had caught fire. My dad put it out with a fire blanket and extinguisher.
There is some damage to the surrounding cabinets, and the wall is black.
My mum phoned the insurance company, but they said they wont cover it as it is an electrical fault.
Her policy document says:

We will pay for accidental damage to the contents of your home, but we will not pay for damage caused by an electrical or mechanical breakdown, wear and tear, loss of value, or anything which happens gradually.

Does this really mean they dont have to do anything for the fire damage?
Thanks

huckster

My understanding is the Churchill would be correct to exclude damage to the dishwasher due to electrical breakdown. But they should cover the damage to the cabinets and the wall. The policy does cover fire and smoke damage.

If Churchill are saying that the cabinets and wall cannot be claimed for, they are wrong. If the house had been totally destoyed by fire, the conclusion would be that Churchill would be saying, sorry but the proximate cause was the electrical fault. No that exclusion only relates to accidental damage claims. The claim for the cabinets is under the fire peril and the wall under smoke.

Your parents should go back to Churchill and ask to speak to a manager.

Astaroth

As above, fire is an insured risk and so as the cause of the fire is an electrical fault they are not liable for the fault but are for the resultant damage.Would need to speak to CH and also your folkes to find out what has actually been said.... if your parents only said that they wanted to claim for the damaged dishwasher then they are correct to decline the claim, obviously if they said they wanted to claim for fire damage to the surrounding units then it should be covered.

MarkyMarkD

The section of the policy you have quoted is irrelevant - this isn't accidental damage, it's fire damage under the main contents section of the policy.

skipsmum

Thanks, that what I thought. The section on accidental damage is what the churchill claims man quoted. My mum doesnt want to claim for the dishwasher, just the cost of cleaning the mess. We have tried to clean up but its impossible to get the black out.
I think I'll phone churchill myself tomorrow. Thanks for all your help xxx

dacouch

Was there a flame?

huckster

Dacouch makes a good point. The Insurers will only pay out under the fire peril if there was a visable flame.

As for phoning Churchill yourself, you will find that they will not discuss with you due to Data Protection. If your parent phones them while you are present, they can give their permission for you to talk to them and hand over the phone to you.

skipsmum

yes, there were flames!
Have spoken to Churchill and someone is going to come and look at it, which is a step in the right direction!
Hotpoint have offered to replace the dishwasher.

Quentin

Maybe Hotpoint will accept liability for the damage as well, and save you having to make a claim.

Astaroth

How old was the dishwasher? I would make Churchill aware that Hotpoint are going to be replacing it as Churchill may want it to be inspected first - if there is a manufacturing fault then Hotpoint would be liable for the resultant damage too and Churchill may pursue them for it.

Did your folkes mention the other damage to Hotpoint?

dacouch

I think from memory Hot Point Dishwashers have a history of over heating / catching fire (It could be a different manufacturer).