To whom do you complain about house insurers/assessors?

Arnurna

Hi, I'm a newbie so apologies if this is in the wrong section.

We've had a problem at home, which has meant us claiming on our house insurance and also us moving out. The works to rectify the problem were meant to have been completed in three months and they were finished by end of August. Since then we have been forever chasing the insurance assessors to get the decorating work finished.

The six-month lease on our temporary apartment finished at the end of November, and in the two weeks prior to that builders came in and half-heartedly tried to finish the job, they didn't succeed and the apartment's rent was paid for another month. In two days time we have to give notice to the landlord whether we're going or staying another month, and the work on the house still hasn't been completed.

Altogether this farcical episode has been going on for nearly 10 months. I feel it's now time to complain to someone but I don't know who. Does anyone have any ideas?

Many thanks.

dunstonh

You complain to the insurer who then have to follow a regulated complaints process.

Arnurna

Hi,

We keep complaining to our assessor but she still doesn't do anything.

Have you any advice about the best way to complain? I know that my seem a simple question, but I've never been in this situation before.

Thanks.

InsideInsurance

You need to register a complaint with your insurers. Outside of that the advice is just the same as with any complaint, you need to document the issues and what the resolution you want is.

Insurers are regulated and have fixed timescales in which to deal with complaints, unfortunately they aren't particularly quick with them having 8 weeks to give a final response and if they fail to do so (or do give a final response before 8 weeks which you arent happy with) you can then register the complaint with the Financial Ombudsman Service. Unfortunately with them you are generally looking at 12 weeks for a simple complaint and potentially much longer for a complex one.

Arnurna

Thanks for your replies, they're very helpful.