Home Insurance refusing to pay!

Biff1984 · 9 March 2014 at 2:15PM

Hi,

My garden wall blew over in recent storms and it's proved to be a nightmare from the onset.

I contacted my insurance company who in turn sent a loss adjustor out to inspect the damage. To keep it short, he repudiated the claim on the grounds that, the wall to too high for it's width & that the wall was leaning & the mortar was cracked! I find it amazing that he assumes to know the mortar had failed & the wall was leaning.....it was on the floor in pieces! He showed me government guidelines for height & width, but this came into effect in 1996, the wall was built in 1987!!
What I also find interesting is that his report stated there were 'no proper foundations'. I have obtained several quotes for the rebuild of the wall & every quote says 'to use existing foundations'. The adjustor has also been dishonest regarding damage to neighbouring properties, stating in his report that there wasn't any! This is an absolute lie & I can prove this!
Is it common for loss adjustors to be dishonest or am I just unlucky?
I have made my complaint to my insurance company, who are still refusing to pay up

I voiced my concerns to my insurance company regarding the adjustors dishonesty & they have offered me £100 as a good will gesture, I find this slightly insulting.
So I'm about to start the process of taking it to the ombudsman? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Buzby · 9 March 2014 at 3:26PM

Firstly, he didn't 'lie' - it was his professional opinion.

If you can find another loss adjuster to take your viewpoint, then by all means use his report and expect to get the fee for this repaid by your insurer.

Next, does your policy actually cover external boundaries? I went through a similar issue, only for them to finally reject the claim because boundary 'structures' were explicitly excluded - they did however pay out yo my neighbour for the damage sustained to his shed.

A complaint to the Ombudsman will achieve nothing positive - if you get a report supporting your viewpoint and your insurer does not reconsider, that's when you can expect them to intervene.

Biff1984 · 9 March 2014 at 3:40PM

Hi Buzby,

Regarding the damage to neighbouring properties, there was plenty. This was something the loss adjustor & I discussed on his arrival, so for him to then report 'no damage to neighbouring property' is far from being honest.
In answer to your question, yes my policy does cover external boundaries.
I have already been through the complaints procedure with my insurance company & received their final decision. I thought this was the point where I get in touch with the ombudsman?
Thanks for your input