advice plz

angiebabycircles

probably not even in the right topic board! sorry if not.
just wanted some advice plz - 1st august i had a house fire firemans proffessional opinion and all indications lead to it being the cut out box from the electric meter - house is a mess uninhabitable for approx 6 months insurance state, family cat died. thats tryin to put it short - just wanted to know if there is anything i can do about it?

Jamie_Carter

angiebabycircles wrote: »

probably not even in the right topic board! sorry if not.
just wanted some advice plz - 1st august i had a house fire firemans proffessional opinion and all indications lead to it being the cut out box from the electric meter - house is a mess uninhabitable for approx 6 months insurance state, family cat died. thats tryin to put it short - just wanted to know if there is anything i can do about it?

Not quite sure what you asre asking???

Are you saying that you do have insurance?

angiebabycircles

yes we do have house insuance - but basically fire started as equipment faulty - never been checked etc -northwest electrical state they only check equipment if electricty supplier sugests - i.e. british gas. so really annoyed - fireman states if in middle of night i wouldnt be here!!!!!

Jamie_Carter

I'm still not sure what you are asking???

Claim off your insurance. They should provide temporary housing whilst your house is sorted out, and the rest of your claim is assessed.

If the fire was caused by your consumer unit (as it sounds like from what you said), then a new one will obviously be fitted that complies with todays standards.

angiebabycircles

house insurance is doing housed etc and paying for accomadation - i mean ona personal level

Jamie_Carter

angiebabycircles wrote: »

house insurance is doing housed etc and paying for accomadation - i mean ona personal level

On a personal level I presume you mean dealing with the stress?

angiebabycircles

with everything - our lives a mess - son traumatised - loss of our beloved cat

Jamie_Carter

There are various ways to get stress counseling. Probably the best person to ask would be your GP, who should be able to point you in the right direction.

Also the Red Cross offer help in situation like this.

Having your house and your lives ruined by fire can be extremely traumatic. But the most important thing is that you and you family are ok. As for the loss of pets, you will no doubt be greiving for them, but time is a great healer.

Material items, and your house can be replaced.

angiebabycircles

thankyou = isnt there any type of protocol for ensuring equipments safety andv durability????

Terrylw1

The cut out is the property of the distributor.

Suppliers don't tend to ask them to go out but if they get informed of a leak or other problem, they can contact the emergency service the distributor has.

Usually though its far too late as data from visits is transmitted hence takes time. Usually, the suppliers agent who noticed it would have already contacted the distributor to inform them of the situation.

You are getting into a legal case by the sounds of it. I would first suggest you contact your insurance company and see if their legal people are already doing the legwork for you.

Was there an incident report from the fire service?

jalexa

angiebabycircles wrote: »

firemans proffessional opinion and all indications lead to it being the cut out box from the electric meter -

First of all thank goodness you are safe, sorry about the cat.

The fireman will undoubtedly be clear about the seat of the fire but the explanation "being the cut out box from the electric meter" doesn't make electrical (or responsibility) sense. Either it was in (or just before) the "cut-out" (before the meter therefore DNO responsibility) or after the meter (householder responsibility).

You ask "isnt there any type of protocol for ensuring equipments safety andv durability?". Millions of "installation years" (yes millions) indicate proven durability. Most fires result from cannabis tampers, other fires may result from faulty earthing (normally the householders responsibility). Theoretically a cable fault at the cable end could cause a fire but it could be difficult to detect a latent fault at a biennial visual inspection.

Can you say something about the vintage of your house? When were the household electrics last tested, particularly the earthing?