Real-life MMD: Should I return £2,000 insurance cash?

gaily

I work for an insurance broker, and can safely say that if you had lost the watch and then found it after payout - you should return the money. However, grey area as it was damaged and they returned the watch to you.

We've had clients who've lost and then found items, and returned the money - which has gone in their favour at the next few renewals, or when they've had a more substantial loss further down the line.

It may be worth finding out from your insurers - and you can do this with out advising that the watch is working again - whether they returned the watch as having no salvage value.

(Example of salvage:- if you lose 1 earring from a pair, insurers will ask for the other earring if you get a payout for the whole value of the pair - as they have paid you for both, but you can often buy the other earring back at Salvage value - this is usually at the meltdown value of the metal if gold, or a much reduced rate if diamond etc)

If they've returned it to you as having no salvage value - then it's yours clean and free. Keep the money and get on with things. Alternatively, you could ask them what the salvage value was - pay it, and ditto - all yours.

It's unlikely to bite you in the bum if you keep the money, and don't say anything at the moment, but your premium next year will increase to reflect the claim, and even if you switch, the CUE (Claims Underwriting Exchange) may well show up a payout if you change insurers, as they all check if you've had claims. Additionally, if you stay with the insurer, and have another claim in the next few years it all adds up to a worse insurance risk.

You know that the right thing to do is to phone your insurers and confess all. They may state what others have - that it could break again (almost like running around in a car that has been previously written off, and legally put back on the road) and not change the settlement. If you had to pay the money back, then you still have a working watch that you could claim off your insurers again if it did break in 6 months.

You're really asking if it's right to get away with it, and that's a true moral dilemma, not a financial one!!

tinkerbel*79

So the watch is working now, but it's not garenteed to keep working are you honestly going to trust the time? or are u going to keep checking it to make sure it's keeping correct time and not losing minutes. You'll probably find the watch will stop and start at random.
It's not just the water that is the problem but the soap u used in the wash to.
If you returned the vouchers and then it stopped working in a few months and u tried claiming again with they pay out again?
The insurance company say's it's a right off, doesnt mean it's not repairable. Take it to a few jewllers for another opinion, definatly get it cleaned inside to stop corrosion.
Keep the vouchers and consider buying a new watch or paying to repair the old one with them.
But vouchers? thats a bit odd, what insurer pays in vouchers?

:mad:Trying to stay cool under the pressure of life. :cool:

snowleopard61

tgroom57 wrote: »

Hang on a mo while I go find an Omega watch to buy. A watch that survives the wash is worth having.

I've known a dirt cheap (under a fiver) battery alarm clock to work perfectly again after going through the wash and being dried out in the airing cupboard In fact, I'd venture to suggest that a cheapo one would be more likely to do so, although it obviously wouldn't be nearly as nice in the first place.

My suggestion would be to keep the money (you haven't deceived anyone; they deemed the watch irreparable and they can afford it) but give a decent donation to a worthwhile charity.

jud!th

Morally speaking, if it was a car that was written off it's an 'insurance write off', they give you the money and then you can keep the car and get it fixed if you want, can't you?

So I think here's a watch that was an 'insurance write off', they've given you the money, and, morally, you can keep the watch and get it fixed if you want.

pineapple

In my experience you get 'done' by insurance companies just for the act of making a claim (whether or not anything was paid out).
In fact re house insurance you are usually expected to inform them of repairs whether or not a claim was made as they load your insurance depending on your risk factor.

It would be clear fraud if you pretended it had been damaged and it would be fraud if it was lost then found. But it has been inspected and returned.
It may well pack in tomorrow or it might be regarded as damaged goods regardless. Don't know if you can tell with watches but you can certainly tell whether a mobile has had water ingress and that makes it virtually valueless with respect to re-sale/guarantee.

I don't see any moral or legal dilemma.

timbstoke

There is no dilemma here.

- The watch went through the washed and was written off.
- You have an apparently working watch and a voucher to replace it
- You are not, as far as you've said, an expert watchmaker

Therefore, the obvious answer is:

- Use the vouchers to buy a replacement watch
- Sell the existing watch, making it clear that it's an insurance write-off
- Next time, use a soft dry cloth instead of a washing machine

stmartinsdiver

The most important thing is that the insurance company considered the watch as written-off. It is almost certainly corroded inside, cannot be repaired at an economic rate and may well stop again at some point. If they have settled your claim and returned the watch then you have nothing to worry about. If the watch keeps going then that is your good luck. They would not have returned it if they considered it had any value so look on it a good result with a clear conscience.

patriceb

Yes you should return the money, its folks like you that cause insurance to be so costly for others, there are a lot of people that make false claims and then everyone else suffers from inflated insurance prices.:mad::mad:

missy-ss

Oooh, I can see why this is tempting, and I agree that the watch could break again, however, this most definitely IS insurance fraud in law and I think the fact that you have posed this question on here means you know that. Can I suggest if you could afford to own and insure a £2,000 Omega watch in the first place, this money, whilst I am sure handy, is probably not going to change your life, and so why would you do something you are worried is dishonest and indeed risk getting caught? I think you should phone them and explain the situation and offer the vouchers back but say that you are worried it might stop again in a couple of months and ask them to honour the claim at that point if it does.

JayD

Keep it and good luck to you.

It wasn't working when you sent it back, you paid the £100 excess and they checked it themselves too.

Interesting that they sent back to you though - and pretty exciting that it has started working again.

Hope you spend the £2k wisely