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If your belongings go missing,
report the loss to the police as soon as possible
and make a note of the crime number the police
give you and the name and address of the police
station where you reported the loss. Even
if you think that the item was lost rather
than stolen, if you do not report the loss
to the police the insurer may reject your
claim. If your purse or wallet and/or cheque
book have disappeared, report this to your
bank and all credit and shop card issuers
so that they can cancel your cards.
Emergency measures
If your belongings are stolen following a
break-in at your home, first concentrate on
the damage to the building.
Although the cost
of repairing the damage is covered by your
buildings insurance, it will be a condition
of your contents policy that you take immediate
steps to make your home secure in order to
prevent further loss – such as boarding
up a broken window.
You should also take immediate
steps to prevent further damage if your home
and possessions have been damaged by fire,
flood or severe weather – putting plastic
sheeting over a hole in your roof for example.
Making the claim
Once you have reported the
loss to the police and/or organised any emergency
repairs, make a list of the stolen or damaged
items and take photographs of any damage.
Do not throw away anything that has been damaged
since your insurer may ask to see it.
Once
you have established what you need to claim
for, check your policy to make sure that you
are covered then contact you insurer –
using its helpline if one exists – for
a claim form and advice on what to do next.
Fill in the claim form, giving details of
what has been stolen or damaged and how this
happened.
Your claim is likely to be processed
more quickly if you back up your claim with
the original receipt for the item, a professional
valuation (if appropriate) or other proof
of ownership.
You should also give estimates
of the likely replacement and/or repair costs.
If you have not yet obtained estimates, send
the claim form in anyway but add a not explaining
that the form does not represent your final
claim.
Warning: Do not repair or
replace items until you have your insurer’s
written agreement to do so – some insurers
will arrange for the repair or replacement
directly with certain suppliers.
When you make a claim after
a burglary, make clear that the list of stolen
items is complete ‘as far as I can see
at present’.
If lots of
things have been stolen, you may not notice
that some things – jewellery you do
not wear that often, for example – have
gone missing until weeks after the break-in.
Checks on your claim
Provided that you have sent
the necessary information in support of your
claim, your insurer should agree to your replacing
and/or repairing your lost or damaged belongings.
However, if you have claimed to replace a
damaged item, your insurer may send a claims
inspector to confirm that the item cannot
be repaired before agreeing to a replacement.
If your claim is very complex, your insurer
may appoint a loss adjuster.
Some insurers replace or repair items using
their own suppliers, rather than giving you
the money to do this yourself.
However, if
the insurer cannot replace the item with the
same model or a similar alternative –
for example, if you are claiming for a piece
of antique jewellery – you can insist
that the company pays you the value of the
item.
Alternatively, you can agree to pay
the difference for a better version of what
you lost.
Getting problems
sorted out
If your claim is not accepted
in full, ask the insurer to explain why –
and do not cash any cheques you are sent.
Be cautious of accepting any offers of less
than the amount you are claiming.
If you are
asked to complete a form agreeing to ‘full
and final settlement’, do not sign if
there is a possibility that you will have
to claim more.
Common reasons why insurers reject or reduce
a claim are:
• You are under-insured
• Your policy does not cover you for
what you are claiming for
• You are claiming for the full cost
of replacement, but your policy only gives
indemnity cover
• The insurer has made a deduction for
wear and tear.
If your insurer will
not pay your claim, or has offered you less
than you claimed because you could not provide
a valuation, get a new estimated valuations
by describing the items to experts like antique
shop proprietors and jewellers.
If you cannot
provide the original receipt and your insurer
disputes whether you ever owned the item you
are claiming for, try to find photographs
depicting it – a snap of you sporting
your new gold chain at your birthday party,
for example – or take witness statements
from people who have seen the things.
If the
disputed claim is very large, consider employing
a loss assessor.
If you and your insurer still cannot agree,
and you think that your insurer is still being
unreasonable, you can complain.
Home contents
insurance claims
Information about making a
claim under your home contents insurance
policy
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