serious issues with home insurance claim

carlih1

I made a claim for accidental damage of some items in my bedroom. Lady came around took pictures, got some to come and clean items which they couldnt, replaced two carpets all within a short space of time. Then we seemed to hit a stumbling block. She asked for quotes for replacement items, i went on one website and got quotes for like for like items. She then came back to me saying there were inaccuracies in her information because originally i had stated the items were from different suppliers. I spoke to her and told her i only went to one suppliers because it was easier. She didnt ask for quotes from different manufacturers. Then she started going on about proof of ownership. As i had no receipts for items as they are fairly old and out of warranty. She queried my duvet because it was made from duck down and not a standard issue duvet. Which i was not very impressed about. Every email seems to take over a week to reply to and then i have to push for it, this claim was made on the 5th march and is still not settled. She asked for photos of the duvet labels to verify the quality. She then started harping on about proof of ownership?? The duvet is on my bed. i managed to find a delivery note for the duvet from john lewis and emailed that to her. She has now sent a letter stating that they have been in contact with john lewis and that the information on the delivery note is incorrect the number does not match the name or address on the note? What id like to know is what are the time frames for this sort of thing? She seems very unprofessional with her assuming i dont own stuff in my house and that i should only have basic bedding etc. She did give me a settlement figure two weeks ago which included a sale item and the wrong size bed. Which i queried and she hasnt got back to me. Could anyone tell me the timeframe for this sort of claim and are they allowed to call up and query a purchase without my prior consent? surely the company shouldnt be giving out any information?

Thanks

InsideInsurance

A company cannot give out personal information but they generally can confirm or deny provided information is correct and stay within the Data Protection Act. If there is a complaint to be made on this then it would be to JL as there is no law against asking someone to share information only one for sharing it when you dont have permission.

There is no legal timeframe for completing a claim within. On the basis that open claims cost money it is normal for insurers to want to resolve them in a reasonable timeframe but a whole host of factors may extend things. Ultimately if you are unhappy with the service provided then register a formal complaint from which they have a set 8 week window in which to respond.

With most home insurance then you have cover for other peoples items in your property irrespective of ownership. It therefore simply comes down not to proving you owned it but more proving that the item existed and that the damage/ loss it sustained was due to the incident. Obviously for the former in this kind of claim then the damaged items is the proof they exist and depending on what the accident was then proof that they were damaged in this incident and not damaged by some other means may be self evident or not

dacouch

InsideInsurance wrote: »

A company cannot give out personal information but they generally can confirm or deny provided information is correct and stay within the Data Protection Act. If there is a complaint to be made on this then it would be to JL as there is no law against asking someone to share information only one for sharing it when you dont have permission.

There is no legal timeframe for completing a claim within. On the basis that open claims cost money it is normal for insurers to want to resolve them in a reasonable timeframe but a whole host of factors may extend things. Ultimately if you are unhappy with the service provided then register a formal complaint from which they have a set 8 week window in which to respond.

With most home insurance then you have cover for other peoples items in your property irrespective of ownership. It therefore simply comes down not to proving you owned it but more proving that the item existed and that the damage/ loss it sustained was due to the incident. Obviously for the former in this kind of claim then the damaged items is the proof they exist and depending on what the accident was then proof that they were damaged in this incident and not damaged by some other means may be self evident or not

JL have recently uprated their security re home deliveries as there were reports of third parties ringing them and asking for a delivery to be sent to a different (Entirely unrelated) address.

*Scarlett

It does seem odd that they are asking for proof of ownership when you have the damaged items in your possession.

Are they saying that the photos that they took are different from the items you are claiming for?

Can I ask what happened to cause a claim for 2 carpets, a down duvet and a bed? :eek:

dacouch

*Scarlett wrote: »

It does seem odd that they are asking for proof of ownership when you have the damaged items in your possession.

Are they saying that the photos that they took are different from the items you are claiming for?

Can I ask what happened to cause a claim for 2 carpets, a down duvet and a bed? :eek:

Call it a lucky guess, can of paint

InsideInsurance

dacouch wrote: »

Call it a lucky guess, can of paint

Was my guess too though takes some skill to get 2 carpets and the bed with one can given a bed doesnt tend to be right in the doorway

dacouch

InsideInsurance wrote: »

Was my guess too though takes some skill to get 2 carpets and the bed with one can given a bed doesnt tend to be right in the doorway

Nothing surprises me now days, did you ever see the program about insurance claims where L&G recreated a split paint claim they did not believe. They sacrificed a television, bed, drawers and carpet to disprove the claim.

Although it could be one of my favourite claims which went through with little questions, which was a customer who gave birth unexpectedly in her front room. Luckily had A/D cover and their expensive carpet and sofa was covered. Might have presented as a cheeky EOW claim if no A/D cover

InsideInsurance

dacouch wrote: »

Nothing surprises me now days, did you ever see the program about insurance claims where L&G recreated a split paint claim they did not believe. They sacrificed a television, bed, drawers and carpet to disprove the claim.

It was the counter fraud demonstration that one of the trainers gave that I sat in on once that made me laugh. She was saying about people faking accidents to replace outdated tech but how much more robust modern items are so pushed her company laptop off the desk to "prove" her point.

Took a good few minutes going around the room finding where the different parts had spun off to. Would have loved listening into her call to IT Helpdesk to say she'd "dropped" her laptop and it had pretty much shattered. :rotfl:

carlih1

*Scarlett wrote: »

It does seem odd that they are asking for proof of ownership when you have the damaged items in your possession.

Are they saying that the photos that they took are different from the items you are claiming for?

Can I ask what happened to cause a claim for 2 carpets, a down duvet and a bed? :eek:

Ah my little angel and her friend decided to paint my bedroom with some kind of pink paint that didn't come off of anything! :doh:

I scrubbed and scrubbed, but i think she got it with some sort of cheap painting craft kit.

I have no idea why they are saying that my duvet that is on my bed doesn't belong to me, she never actually asked the question? x

*Scarlett

The insurer has clearly accepted that you have a valid claim as they have offered you a settlement figure.

If you are not happy with the amount then escalate to the complaints dept / manager. Companies should respond within a certain time frame - 14 days is in my head but this might not be right.

If you have no joy you could try

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

sithemadmonkey

*Scarlett wrote: »

The insurer has clearly accepted that you have a valid claim as they have offered you a settlement figure.

If you are not happy with the amount then escalate to the complaints dept / manager. Companies should respond within a certain time frame - 14 days is in my head but this might not be right.

If you have no joy you could try

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

They have to acknowledge receipt of the complaint 'promptly', but have up to 8 weeks to give a final response (i.e. resolve the complaint one way or another). If it takes longer than 8 weeks, or OP isn't happy with the response, then they can take it to FOS.