Urgent help please - home insurance

patchy987

Hi OK so I had a house fire in March last year.

My insurers put us in a hotel for 2 months and then into a rental house since may. The builders have been given until 2nd feb to complete the work and we have been told to leave the rental house.

Now my problem is that the builders took so long in starting the work (december)
That due to a few problems (not covered by the claim) they encountered the house will not be ready by the 2nd.

The insurers will not pay for any more accommodation and my house is still uninhabitable.

I will therefore be homeless until the work is completed

I have argued with the insurers that if the builders had started the work back when they won the contract in August that the problems could have been dealt with in good time but they are saying they will do nothing to help us

Any advice please as I'm so scared

dacouch

Who are your Insurer?

Are the builders a contractor the Insurer chose / recommended or are they a builder you chose? (It makes a difference)

What exact reason are the Insurers giving for them only paying the rent until 2nd Feb?

patchy987

My insurers are axa.

I had a management company dealing with the claim on my behalf called Morgan Clarke, they sent 4 builders to quote and the insurers chose the cheapest

They are refusing any more accommodation costs as they feel the delays in finishing the job are down to an extra problem the builders encountered (damp in the kitchen which is being sorted now by someone they appointed for me). My argument is that if the builders had started work when they won the contract instead of waiting nearly 8 weeks to get started then these problems wouldn't have made the job over run as would have been discovered sooner

dacouch

Who appointed this management company, was it the Insurers or did you or your loss Assessors put them forward?

(Note a Loss Assessor is someone who works for you and charges you, a Loss Adjuster works for the Insurer and is paid by the Insurer)

w00519772

patchy987 wrote: »

My insurers are axa.

I had a management company dealing with the claim on my behalf called Morgan Clarke, they sent 4 builders to quote and the insurers chose the cheapest

They are refusing any more accommodation costs as they feel the delays in finishing the job are down to an extra problem the builders encountered (damp in the kitchen which is being sorted now by someone they appointed for me). My argument is that if the builders had started work when they won the contract instead of waiting nearly 8 weeks to get started then these problems wouldn't have made the job over run as would have been discovered sooner

Who appointed Morgan Clark? Was it you or AXA?

patchy987

Morgan Clarke are a loss assessor (i couldn't think of the proper term )

They approached me after the fire and said they could deal with everything for me, I was so shaken at the time and didn't know what to do so it seemed like a good idea to sign up with them

dacouch

What have Morgan Clark (They're Loss Assessors) said when you've told them the Insurers refuse to pay any more rent?

Are Axa paying the builders invoices direct or is the money sent to you or your Loss Assessor (LA) to then pay the builder?

Why did the builders delay before starting the work?

patchy987

It was Morgan Clarke that told me the insurers won't pay any more accommodation costs

AXA are paying via the loss assessor

The builder stripped most of the house out and then just seemed to stop, even my neighbour says he had hardly been there. He didn't remove the burnt kitchen until beginning of December when they found the damp problem behind some units

dacouch

What's the name of the Builders?

I ask as many of the builders that Loss Assessors put forward are paying the LA a commission.

Have your LA suggested any resolutions? Bear in mind the big fee you pay them is for them to smooth out your claim and be able to claim more money than if you were dealing with the claim yourself (In theory)

FutureGirl

If the builders were not appointed by the insurers, but by the LA, it could be that the issues isn't the insurers, but the LA. This is because what the insurers are doing is basically cash settling the claim with you (except you're going via LA so the insurers cash settle with them instead).

patchy987

It was the loss assessor that appointed the builder but I only found this out a couple of days ago. I was led to believe the insurers appointed them.

I am so so scared now of being homeless