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Do this BEFORE a burglary!!

Having recently been burgled recently I wanted to write a blog so that others can avoid the situation we found ourselves in, where the insurance company essentially refused to pay out on some of our claim! We are honest hard working people, but because of prolific insurance fraud, many insurance companies are being very tough when it comes to enforcing the wording in their policy documents.

My first piece of advice is not to opt for the cheapest policy – review what you get as standard, what your single article limit is and what the total valuables limit is on your policy. Consider policies which are 5 star Defaqto approved too. And once you do go ahead, please take the time to read the small print very carefully. You might be surprised what is contained in there…we were!

So here are my tips for protecting yourselves:

  1. If you don’t have one, then get yourself a safe (and make sure it is bolted down with the correct fittings). Put your most valuable or sentimental items in the safe.
  2. Make sure you have an alarm – and use it, especially if you’ve told your insurance company you have one!
  3. Keep your receipts! An insurance claim has to be substantiated and unless you have proof of purchase or proof of ownership, then your insurance company is likely not to pay out. If you don’t have receipts, then I suggest the following:
  • Take photos of the item – make sure you include a ruler or something that gives the scale.
  • For high value items, like jewellery, get a written valuation. In my case we had something which we didn’t think was worth more than the single article limit on our policy, but it turned out to be 5 times that value and as a result it wasn’t insured correctly.
  • Keep photos of you wearing an item too – this counts as substantiation.
  • For inherited items, make sure you keep a copy of the Will, or ask a family member to send an email or letter to confirm when you were given it – sadly the testimony of a family member is no good after an item has been taken.
The above may sound a little over the top, but based on my own experience, I am telling all my friends and family to do this.

Good luck!

Comments

  • dacouch
    dacouch Posts: 21,637 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Keep copies of the photos away from your home eg at a friend's home or just email them to yourself.

    Having copies of photos, receipts and inventories is pretty pointless if they're all destroyed in a fire or flood
  • What if you get burgled and they steal the receipts, and what if the person you gave receipts gets burgled or loses them too? And do photo copy receipts count as evidence.

    Also, do you HAVE to have an alarm?

    I got a dud above my door, i guess it could do with a led in the bottom to make it look more real.
  • forgotmyname
    forgotmyname Posts: 32,696 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    If i kept receipts for everything i own then i would need a bigger house.
    Censorship Reigns Supreme in Troll City...

  • TSx
    TSx Posts: 855 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited 18 October 2015 at 11:07PM
    It sounds like your claim has been dealt with by a fraud department...

    Most insurers will deal with a claim on the understanding there will be limited proof of purchase available (and very little for inherited items). Depending on the exact circumstances, it may be worth a complaint to the insurer as the financial ombudsman are unlikely to support any application of a 'strict proof of ownership' basis for settlement.

    I would advise to never declare an alarm to the insurer (although having one is a good idea) - the discount is rarely worth much and you are then giving them an opportunity to decline the claim if you fail to set the alarm.

    In terms of single article limits and valuable limits, unfortunately these will be clear when the policy is taken out and are much lower on the 'budget' policies than on some of the more premium ones.

    edit to add: one of the huge contradictions i've seen across many claims departments is that you are always advised to take photos of your jewellery for insurance purposes - but so few people do that when photos come in like this, they usually look staged and often attract more attention than if there were no photos at all!
  • pinkteapot
    pinkteapot Posts: 8,044 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Also, do you HAVE to have an alarm?

    No. When you get house insurance you'll be asked if you have an alarm. If you don't have one, don't say you do or you won't be covered!

    An alarm is just sensible though. Our road of 20 houses has seen two burglaries in the last 18 months. They were the only two houses on the street without alarms. They've since got alarms.

    Burglars will look for the easiest target on the street. Make your property look the least attractive.
  • forgotmyname
    forgotmyname Posts: 32,696 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Oddly its the opposite here, the only house that's ever been broken into is one with an alarm.

    Slightly odd though, they left windows open when they normally wouldn't and he went bankrupt around the same time.
    Censorship Reigns Supreme in Troll City...

  • slink85
    slink85 Posts: 440 Forumite
    What if you get burgled and they steal the receipts, and what if the person you gave receipts gets burgled or loses them too? And do photo copy receipts count as evidence.

    Also, do you HAVE to have an alarm?

    I got a dud above my door, i guess it could do with a led in the bottom to make it look more real.

    pretty pointless, you can tell a fake alarm a mile off, you're basically advertising that your home isn't protected by any alarms, a little counter-intuitive, no?
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