Buildings insurance

ronanmagee

Hi,

We have recently submitted a claim to our buildings insurer. We had an ariel come down from our chimney damaging the chimney in the process resulting in water ingress and additional damage occurring within the house as a result of this. We put in a claim under storm damage which we are covered for.

They requested we get a quote to fix it from a local builder but we asked they to survey first. They said they don't survey in Northern Ireland.

Upon receiving our quote they said they needed to come out and inspect the damage and prepare a report.

The subsequent report stated various other reasons for water ingress stating it was condensation from our boiler and possible leaking shower at ground level (however they never tested any of these claims - I wouldn't have expected them to), declining our claim and suggesting there was no evidence of storm damage.

We commissioned our own completely independent report (from a company outside our local town, with a surveyor we have never met before) who provided a comprehensive breakdown of the water ingress, certainly not caused by condensation/leaking shower, all backed up with photos showing water running down the face of chimney into the loft. He also commented that the original report appeared biased and was not a true reflection of the damage. Unfortunately he could not comment on that cause as he was not there to see the ariel coming down.

I'm concerned that if we submit this report to the insurance company they may read it and consider, but revert back to the line the damage could not have been caused by storm damage.

Has anyone had similar experiences?

Ronan

VictorM_2

If you have evidence to substantiate an insured peril having occurred then by all means submit those documents to the insurer.

If they still disagree with you you can always ask to escalate the complaint however your insurance is based upon perils occurring (in this case storm) and if your insurer has a report saying it is not storm and your report cannot confirm the cause of damage I am unsure if you would actually get anywhere.

Storm damage is easy to spot and obvious once it has happened, cracks in mortar around the flashing or flaunching around the chimney would not be caused by storm.

dacouch

Was there a storm on the night to aerial came down and do you have accidental damage cover?

TSx

Who is the policy with?

System

An aerial falling down in a storm is not evidence of storm damage. You need to prove that the aerial fixings were in good condition and therefore that the storm was of such exceptional ferocity that even an aerial in good condition was blown down.

You presumably have the aerial attachment brackets and most importantly, the securing wires. Did the surveyor look at these? What is their condition?
Did a wire fracture?
Or were they already corroded and just waiting for a storm to happen?

VictorM_2

I would also note an aerial is a contents item, not a buildings one (the roof would be buildings though).

*Scarlett

Some policies will cover damage to property caused by falling TV aerials regardless of storm conditions - check your own policy.

Most policies will exclude wear and tear so as long as the aerial was fixed in good condition there may not have had to be actual storm conditions.

Make a formal complaint to your insurer and if you are not happy with the outcome and you think you are in the right you can escalate to

http://financial-ombudsman.org.uk/