Accident at Coop Petrol Station

allyb79

Hello everyone,

Just looking for a bit of advice on a compensation claim i've put in the the Coop. OH was filling up the car and the cutoff mechanism failed on the pump, covering him in petrol. Luckily it washed out of his jeans but it has ruined the boots he was wearing.

They have offered me 2/3rd of the cost of the boots as compensation as they claim the lesser amount is for wear and tear (email states...We advise that we don’t have the facilities to provide replacements. Also we would not give pay the cost of a brand new pair of boots as the policy is an indemnity policy. This means that we have to put you back in the position you were in prior to the incident. Therefore we would have to deduct an amount for wear and tear on the boots).

Is there anything I can do about this? We only want a replacement pair and i think it's unfair for us to be out of pocket due to their equipment failure.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Their offer is fair as you are being put back to where you was (although there is an additional out of pocket for buying new boots now, they will last longer than the current would have which you'll benefit from later so it balances out).

Surprised they didn't just offer to pay for the boots out of good will though.

There is an email address on the ceo email website to take you straight to the top, they may offer you more than you are entitled to.

allyb79

I completely get it if it was claiming for a crappy pair of boots, but I sent them photos and they are almost brand new.

mattyprice4004

Almost brand new boots are worth a lot less than brand new boots - check eBay and compare a new set to a set that’s barely used.
They get less than 50% of the new price, so their offer is fair.

Gavin83

How much we talking? How old is 'almost brand new'?

Ultimately if you took this to court they'd likely rule their offer is fair. However it is a bit unfortunate on your part if they are virtually new. I'd suggest pushing the company a little more, explaining how new the boots are and hopefully you'll get more of a result. However if you don't it's probably not worth pursuing.

spadoosh

allyb79 wrote: »

I completely get it if it was claiming for a crappy pair of boots, but I sent them photos and they are almost brand new.

Well i would contest the amounts then.

The easy way to do it would be to speak to the manufacture and get their view on how long the pair of boots would reasonably be expected to last. From that deduct the amount of days youve had them and apportion costs accordingly.

At the moment im guessing theyre working off very little information surrounding the boots apart from cost price. So are just chucking an arbitrary figure at you that is less than the full cost of the boots.

Lets say the manufacture offers a 10 year guarantee on the boots and youve had them a year, youd ask for 9/10ths of the cost. Boots last 3 years and youve had them one, 2/3rds the cost. SO contest the amount.

Youre not going to get full price though. Well not unless its a good will gesture.

allyb79

They were 150 quid, hardly a mark on the sole, so 50quid out of pocket if we buy the same ones

LilElvis

When did you buy them and have you got the receipt or a bank/ credit card statement which would show the purchase?

LABMAN

Take the boots to an 'old fashioned' cobbler and see if they can possibly be refurbished.

spadoosh

allyb79 wrote: »

They were 150 quid, hardly a mark on the sole, so 50quid out of pocket if we buy the same ones

Have a look for the boots on ebay, the ones in the shop are not the same as the ones youre husband was wearing. You dont buy shoes from a shop that people have worn before.

Imagine it was £1000 cash. Someone pushes your husband causing him to drop and lose £200. Would you expect the other person to give you £1000 or £200? At the moment you seem to be hung up on expecting £1000. Its not going to happen.

allyb79

I'm not expecting the money in cash, just to replace what was damaged without being out of pocket...

Say i'm round at a friends house and I smash a vase that can't be repaired, I would expect to pay for replacing that item in full, not 60 percent of what it cost as it's been used?