Home Protect is cheapest because they won't honour your claim!

nothomeprotect

Trying to claim over the past 4 months on my Home Protect legal expenses cover has been a nightmare and has made me ill with stress. It's the cheapest because it's rubbish! Claiming on the insurance has been worse than the damage (trespass & private nuisance). They do not reply to emails. They all say "it's underwritten by another insurer," etc. and other lame excuses.

The solicitors they appointed were at best unhelpful and at worst aggressive and just trying to extract extra money or dismiss our claim (which the FRICS surveyor said should have been a"straightforward case "). After I asked to change solicitors (as I am entitled to do by law) I have heard nothing more from Home Protect, alias Family Plus, alias Avantia, alias Ageas, alias UK General Insurance (Ireland) Ltd, etc.

I have innumerable emails from them all denying all responsibility for my legal cover. Even the Financial Ombudsman, who is looking into my case, is having problems with them being evasive and passing the buck. Despite having an insurance policy that covers: “the cost of legal and professional fees, costs and expenses up to £100,000 ….” I am now having to fund this case myself.:mad:

InsideInsurance

Those arent all aliases of each other, predominately are different companies involved in the supply chain of your policy.

Havent seen the policy wording but knowing some of the players then Ageas is the actual underwriter/ insurer. UK General Insurance are an intermediary who have delegated authority from Ageas to write policies in their name (aka MGA). Home Protect is a trading style (aka alias) of Avantia who are the company that sold you the policy. Dont know "family plus" but at a guess its a product name.

Clearly you have an issue with the policy and so you need to refer to your policybook and follow the complaints process as its outlined in it. If you arent happy with the response from the company it says to complain to then you can pass the matter to the FOS.

Your statutory rights and what your insurers are obliged to cover are not one and the same thing. You are legally free to chose whichever law firm you want but your insurers are not obliged to pay for whichever law firm you want.

agrinnall

While you don't necessarily get what you pay for with insurance above a certain price point, you can be pretty confident that the very cheapest are that for a reason. If you're tempted to take out a policy with one of the lesser known and low priced providers it's even more important to do your own research before taking the plunge.

nothomeprotect

Of course I have referred to my policy document & followed the complaints procedure already (and got nowhere) or I wouldn't have needed to submit this post!

I know these companies are different links in the chain but all are now denying responsibility and blaming each other for the failure to honour the policy wording. The Financial Ombudsman has told me "They're trying to put up a smoke screen but we'll find out who it is in the end!"
I'm just hoping to warn people that you won't know who you're dealing with when you have a problem with a Home Protect LEI.

InsideInsurance is mistaken about the statutory rights, which allow freedom of choice of solicitor under Insurance Companies (Legal Expenses Insurance) Regulations 1990. In the case of Brown-Quinn v Equity Syndicate Management (2011) a court held that an insurer in such circumstances cannot reject a policyholder’s choice of a non-panel solicitor because of the solicitor’s rates, as limiting the hourly rates would be a severe inhibition on the freedom of choice. Despite what the policy states, the insurer has no right to limit this choice by trying to limit what they pay a solicitor chosen by the claimant

As for initial cost, yes, Home Protect 's policy looks great on paper. That's why I'm warning people it really is too cheap to pay out.