Check your contents insurance for legal cover!

ExIT

Hi,

I posted a few days ago regarding advice on which of our group of companies legally held our contract, TUPE issues, "lost" personnel file etc.

I was advised by our employee representative (more than 20 people at risk of redundancy) to check my household contents insurance policy, which I had never even considered.

Phoned them up and "Hey Presto!", included legal cover upto £25k for disputes in employment contract law. The person I spoke to said they've been doing loads of this work recently. I have a form to fill in detailing what's happened, if they think there's a better than 50/50 chance of success they appoint a solicitor who is expert in the relevent area.

So, moral of the story, always read your insurance policy carefully!

Cheers,

Neil.

ebeneezer_2

Thanks for the info - need all the help I can get

happywarmgun

I had this last year - and was very pleasantly surprised to find I was covered. Also if you have a credit card that offers 'extras' apparently many of them offer it as well - strange as it sounds....

Mudd14

Yup mot content insurance covers family legal expenses, mine covers up to 50k

dickydonkin

Be aware that many home insurance legal cover for employment disputes will only pay when the dispute is being taken to tribunal and a barrister employed by the insurer will ascertain the chances of success.

As long as there is a 51% chance of success at tribunal (balance of probability), the insurer will pay for legal experts and progress the dispute.

ExIT

That's exactly what my policy covers, if it's 51% chance of success or better they will pursue the case. The £25k has to cover both sets of expenses should I lose the tribunal, but that should be plenty.

As it happens it's looking possible that there could be a "no admission of liability" settlement in my case so no big legal bills.

Cheers,

ExIT.

dickydonkin

ExIT wrote: »

That's exactly what my policy covers, if it's 51% chance of success or better they will pursue the case. The £25k has to cover both sets of expenses should I lose the tribunal, but that should be plenty.

As it happens it's looking possible that there could be a "no admission of liability" settlement in my case so no big legal bills.

Cheers,

ExIT.

My wife was paid compensation for unfair dismissal 1 week prior to the tribunal hearing. The Barristers report determined there was a 70% chance of success on two counts. I suspect the respondant also received such a report from his legal team hence the early pay out.

The insurance company allowed me to choose a solicitor from our area providing they conformed to the terms and conditions of the insurers.

Furthermore, there was no excess to pay for the insurance claim and everything was handled very well from the insurance company (Prudential) and my wife's solicitor.

Incidentally, there are no 'costs' awarded to any party following the conclusion of a tribunal irrespective of the outcome, however, when a mischievous claim is submitted, I understand certain costs can be awarded to a respondent in such circumstances.