Help on insurance claim on wedding dress Dry Cleaners at fault

DrPepper123

Hi, I did post a little while ago on this subject. Basically I put my dress in to a local dry cleaners and when I picked it up it was really creased. Long story short they tried to do it again and today have admitted that they are at fault and they will put this through their insurance.

My question is would anyone know how the insurance company works out how much I am likely to receive? Obviously the dress is second hand but it's a designer dress so was expensive.

Do I have to accept the offer even if I don't agree with it?

wealdroam

Original thread here:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4745969

InsideInsurance

As it is a claim from a third party then it will be indemnity not "new for old" and so will be valued as a secondhand item.

On the assumption you didnt damage it excessively on your day of having it then the price you paid for it will be what you should aim to get back

DrPepper123

Thanks Inside Insurance. So I stand a good chance of getting the full price I paid back then?

InsideInsurance

Under the assumption you did not significant damage to it then yes, it should be roughly what you paid for it, 2nd hand, 3rd hand, 8th hand is not going to make the greatest of differences. You need to make clear however that the price you paid was the secondhand value not as brand new

Obviously if you spilt a bottle of red wine down yourself or put your heel through the train then there would be a reduced valuation.

Pollycat

InsideInsurance wrote: »

On the assumption you didnt damage it excessively on your day of having it then the price you paid for it will be what you should aim to get back

Just curious - is this really true (that the OP could expect to get back what she paid for the dress - assuming I've not misunderstood your post)?

Is that really fair? i.e. getting the full purchase price back for something that is 2nd hand.

The OP said in her first thread that she hoped to sell the dress for £300 to £500 - something that she can't achieve now but she also said that 'the dress was not cheap' so probably more than the £500 she hoped to get 2nd hand.

I'm not disputing consumer law (if that's what the law says), just pondering on the fairness.

InsideInsurance

Pollycat wrote: »

Just curious - is this really true (that the OP could expect to get back what she paid for the dress - assuming I've not misunderstood your post)?

Is that really fair? i.e. getting the full purchase price back for something that is 2nd hand.

The OP said in her first thread that she hoped to sell the dress for £300 to £500 - something that she can't achieve now but she also said that 'the dress was not cheap' so probably more than the £500 she hoped to get 2nd hand.

I'm not disputing consumer law (if that's what the law says), just pondering on the fairness.

She bought it secondhand though which is the key part.

In theory an item that is secondhand and only used once would be basically the same price as it has already depreciated from the new price.

They wouldnt get back any element that they'd paid towards alterations as it is unlikely that a perfect fit for them is a perfect fit for the next person. Obviously alterations that change the design rather than just the size/ fit is different.

It is unlike a car which declares how many prior owners it has, it could be 2nd, 3rd, 8th hand and no one would know anything other than it wasnt bought brand new. It would therefore simply go on condition and presumably the OP paid what they considered a reasonable price considering the brand and condition of the not new dress.

Pollycat

DrPepper123 wrote: »

Obviously the dress is second hand but it's a designer dress so was expensive.

InsideInsurance wrote: »

She bought it secondhand though which is the key part.

In theory an item that is secondhand and only used once would be basically the same price as it has already depreciated from the new price.

They wouldnt get back any element that they'd paid towards alterations as it is unlikely that a perfect fit for them is a perfect fit for the next person. Obviously alterations that change the design rather than just the size/ fit is different.

It is unlike a car which declares how many prior owners it has, it could be 2nd, 3rd, 8th hand and no one would know anything other than it wasnt bought brand new. It would therefore simply go on condition and presumably the OP paid what they considered a reasonable price considering the brand and condition of the not new dress.

I read it that the 'second-hand' part in the OP's post above meant that she bought the dress new but now it is second-hand because she has worn it.

I agree with your 2nd paragraph - assuming that the OP bought the dress second-hand.
I may have missed that the OP's dress was pre-worn when she bought it - in which case I understand your point.

The OP did say in her first thread that the dress was a shop sample.

DrPepper123 wrote: »

I have since rang the shop where I purchased my dress from as I know she dry cleaned it for me as my dress was a shop sample and there were no creases on it when she did it. I also spoke with the dress maker that altered it as I know as part of their service they iron the dress.

Is a shop sample classed as second-hand in this situation?

InsideInsurance

Ok, I miss read/ understood the post then.

We are not talking about consumer rights but simple common law negligence and the concepts of indemnity. As such it is even more shades of grey than legislation is.

If I were still a claims handler I would probably be looking to apply some discount against an ex-display/ sample but no way near the amount that I'd be applying against a brand new item.

If I were acting for the claimant then I'd be pushing for the full purchase price on the grounds it had only been worn once.

Obviously a lot depends on the values we are talking about. It costs money to defend claims and so there is no point paying £200 in unrecoverable fees when you are arguing over £100 difference in price

DrPepper123

to confirm the dress was only tried on in shop by other customers & not worn outside. are you saying that a new dress worn once would get less compensation than a second hand dress worn once? I will be left without a dress that I paid a lot for does this get taken in to account?

what type of information/questions are insurance company likely to ask me?

Pollycat

DrPepper123 wrote: »

to confirm the dress was only tried on in shop by other customers & not worn outside. are you saying that a new dress worn once would get less compensation than a second hand dress worn once? I will be left without a dress that I paid a lot for does this get taken in to account?

what type of information/questions are insurance company likely to ask me?

I'm quite confused too.

InsideInsurance seems to have some experience in this field.

Maybe if you gave some prices e.g. what the brand new price would have been, how much you paid for it as a shop sample - we already know you wanted between £300 & £500 for it after wearing it once and having it professionally cleaned - he/she could advise what an insurance company is likely to offer and what would be a reasonable amount for you to settle on.

Good luck.