In dispute with insurers for 3 yrs

Shoutingout

rs65 wrote: »

Have you seen the links dacouch gave above? The ombudsman comes to fairly specific conclusions. Have you had anything like that?

Hi


Yes, I've seen some. The final decision letter was very specific on many of the issues that we raised. The FOS for example commented that we had practically managed the repairs and done the work that other people should have, as we had to chase everybody around like headless chickens. So the FOS was very supportive in this aspect. However, there was no comment at all on how we were treated unfairly by the Insurers and their team.


Our first complaint with the FOS took a very long time to get to the final decision letter stage. We kept asking why the FOS adjudicator was taking so long. It seems that she was awaiting responses from the Insurers, that dragged on forever. We fail to understand why the Insurers were given so long to reply, as they didn't seem to be very cooperative. Some of the answers that the Insurers provided to the FOS were inaccurate, which I guess caused lots of confusion to the FOS, as the Insurers responses contradicted our evidence.

Shoutingout

Some of the questions fo which I would appreciate some feedback are:-

1) can we take legal action in respect of the Insurers breaching the contract and not actively progressing the repairs (lack of duty to us as customers)?

2) Can the Insurers demand that we appoint the contractor(s) ourselves, or to expect to approve and pay bills only after work has been carried out? They could easily disagree and refuse to pay for the costs, while we would still be liable to pay the invoices in full.

3) Would we need to incur the financial loss (i.e. deal with the repairs) before we take the case to court? or could we seek the funds on the basis of the quotes we've obtained? We already have an expert witness report that establishes that the items raised but not carried out to an acceptable standard.

4) what about all the days that we've had to take off work to deal with claim related issues? Could we seek remuneration for all this time, considering that the Insurers team should have carried out the work, and not us? Would the FOS be likely to rule in our favour?

5) Has anybody come across significant compensation awarded by the FOS for distress and inconvenience? We only seem to find awards up to £1,000.

6) Has anyone come across remuneration for time spent by a claimant dealing with a claim due to the Insurers contractor and team failing to provide some of the services that they should have carried out in an effective manner?

7) When the contractor first came to the house the kitchen tap got broken and a door got damaged but nobody took ownership, so the Insurers couldn't enforce the liability on any of the tradesmen involved. We had to pay to get them fixed even when we weren't living in the house and the only people getting in and out of the house were the contractors appointed by the Insurers. The Insurers said that they had no reason to distrust their contractors, so very annoyingly we were left to pay for the damages. If the FOS agrees that the Insurers should deal with the repairs, would it be reasonable for us to expect somebody to be in the house at all times and deal with safety of our home and personal belongings? Just asking as we didn't know the contractor before but our house was completely stripped out. It's a different kettle of fish to have people that we don't know in your house with all our belongings, especially as we would need to move out of the house for a few weeks and there is no chance that we would be allowed to take time off work for this.

8) I've heard that if you're not happy with the FOS you could take the case up with an Independent Assessor. I understand that they wouldn't comment on the final decision itself but on whether the correct processes have been followed. Would the Independent Assessor look into why the FOS haven't addressed our complaint about "unfair treatment", amongst other issues raised?

9) Of the FCA rules, one of which being "fair treatment", what other rules should the FOS consider when reviewing complaints?

If nobody can help with some of the answers, may you could please direct me to some other forum regarding legal assistance, etc?

Many thanks to all for your help!

magpiecottage

Shoutingout wrote: »

We provided them with copies of internal correspondence with unprofessional remarks but they couldn't comment on these, on how the Insurers team communicated, whether inaccurate information had been provided, or whether the Insurers team were influencing them or colouring the Insurers perception on us.

If they have libelled you in internal correspondence then in theory you can sue for that irrespective of the claim itself. You would need a solicitor's help for that, though. The time limits are also short.

Shoutingout

magpiecottage wrote: »

If they have libelled you in internal correspondence then in theory you can sue for that irrespective of the claim itself. You would need a solicitor's help for that, though. The time limits are also short.

Hi Magpiecottage


Many thanks for that. What are the time limits? I'm wondering whether it would be really hard to prove on the basis that they could argue that it could be left to interpretation. Also, would we need to prove it was deliberate? If so, this could be difficult, though it's clear on our minds that the information hasn't been presented to the Insurers in a transparent and objective manner.


Anybody knows if there is a way of seeking legal advice for so many hours for a nominal fee? We've got such a volume of evidence that it wouldn't be financially viable for us to present it all to a solicitor. It would take him/her days just to review all the documentation before any advice could be given to us.


Should I present some samples of how we've perceived to be libelled to the ICO? Is this something that they would look into in terms of an organisation providing / having inaccurate data on us, especially when it unfairly puts us in a bad light?


I could write a couple of books from our experience, and all the challenges that we've faced. I'd love to somehow to raise awareness so that other customers like us can learn from our experience, and the relevant organisations take more responsibility about treating their customers fairly - they are not dealing with a policy no but human beings! The relevant regulators have been approached but, from our personal experience, there seems to be a clear gap in the system.


Many thanks again for the help!

rudekid48

It looks like what you are really after is free legal advice. You're not going to be able to get this to any standard on here - especially with the minimal amount of detail on the thread.

Why not try and condense your couple of days reading worth of evidence into a clear and concise summary, you will then be able to have a sensible (and potentially free) initial consultation with a solicitor. At the very least they should be able to tell you if they may take your case on.

Shoutingout

rudekid48 wrote: »

It looks like what you are really after is free legal advice. You're not going to be able to get this to any standard on here - especially with the minimal amount of detail on the thread.

Why not try and condense your couple of days reading worth of evidence into a clear and concise summary, you will then be able to have a sensible (and potentially free) initial consultation with a solicitor. At the very least they should be able to tell you if they may take your case on.

Hi rudekid


I entirely respect your feedback but we're not just after free legal advice. We're simply after some guidance and feedback from people who have the technical knowledge or have gone through a similar experience. I thought that was the purpose behind this forum. Condensing all the paperwork and issues that we've faced is easier said that done, and I entirely take your comments on board. It's hard to give very specific details as I wouldn't know where to start, but I'm more than happy to answer any questions if anybody needs any clarification. I thought that my posts provide the big picture, and I thought that people would ask if they needed further information.


We do want to go for legal advice and were wondering if there is some organisation that we can go for an informal discussion an pay a £500 nominal fee (or thereabouts) for 3 hours or so to assess if we have a case before presenting all the relevant evidence to our local solicitor. We've already spoken to some solicitors and have been advised that our case is very complex and there is loads to it. We've been informed that before they can provide any advice they would technically need to review all the relevant documentation first before an initial assessment / feedback can be provided.


Even condensing all the issues would take at least 2 pages, but again the solicitor would not be able to provide any comments without having seen the actual evidence, and we totally understand this. Also, any advice that the solicitor gives us would need to be properly documented with a subsequent letter, so all in all we're looking at ~£2,000 just for an initial consultation.


We wanted to gather some feedback from the forum to gather a better understanding which could potentially give us some direction as to what the most effective approach could be, or what avenues to explore before embarking on legal action full on.

We do have lots to offer from our personal experience and share with other people who are going through a major claim. Hindsight is a wonderful thing! If we had known what we know now we would have happily paid for our own Loss Adjustor and looked for our own contractor. We would have happily paid the fees to be hassle and aggravation free!! We put our faith on professional people who have ultimately let us down with their poor professional services.


Once this saga is over I'll be putting some of my time into helping others as I totally empathise with the frustration. You really need to go through it to entirely appreciate how important it is not how much or little the premium is, but how the Insurer responds and deals with you as a customer in the case of a claim. This is when you will really see the true colours and know if the Insurers actually do what they say on the tin....

rs65

Shoutingout wrote: »

Anybody knows if there is a way of seeking legal advice for so many hours for a nominal fee? We've got such a volume of evidence that it wouldn't be financially viable for us to present it all to a solicitor. It would take him/her days just to review all the documentation before any advice could be given to us.

You are going to need to pay lawyers fees if you want legal advice.

I'll be honest and say I really don't follow what you are aiming to achieve as your posts are all over the place and so long-winded.

Can you answer this briefly - how much are you aiming for?

Shoutingout

HI RS65

First of all many thanks for writing again and apologies if my posts are too long winded.

The cost of the total claim we've put forward to the Insurers to deal with repairs come to £27,500 but they've only offered us £15,000 leaving us considerably out of pocket and with all the work and responsibility.

We simply want the remedial work to be done with as little inconvenience as possible and without us incurring financial loss. We want for the insurers to either give us the cash we need so that we get on with it, or that they get on with it and rectify the substandard repairs.

Ideally we'd also like some form compensation for the extremely poor services we've received and what we've had to endure for 3 years. But above this we'd like to raise awareness about what customers go through when dealing with an irresponsible Insurer. In an ideal world we'd like the regulators to investigate our evidence so that appropriate action against our Insurers is taken..

Ps SORRY for getting carried away again but we feel very strongly about it

rs65

Shoutingout wrote: »

The cost of the total claim we've put forward to the Insurers to deal with repairs come to £27,500 but they've only offered us £15,000 leaving us considerably out of pocket and with all the work and responsibility.

If this is the subject of a current complaint with the ombudsman, why not wait for the outcome.

magpiecottage

rs65 wrote: »

If this is the subject of a current complaint with the ombudsman, why not wait for the outcome.

Absolutely. If upheld, it is likely that FOS will also make an award for what they used to call distress and inconvenience but have started calling trouble and strife or something like that.

However, legal action for libel must commence within a year from "publication" - irrespective of what FOS is up to - but, since it is not part of the dispute at FOS - ought to be able to run alongside it provided you made clear that it was a separate action for libel and not a dispute about the policy itself.