Insurance claim for damaged clothes in tumble dryer fire

[insuranceclaim]

Has anyone had a successful insurance claim for clothes damaged in a tumble dryer fire?

My DM lives in a block of flats which has a communal laundry used by the residents. Earlier this year there was a fire in the laundry due to a faulty tumble dryer, and DM's clothes which were in the tumble dryer were obviously ruined. The fire was not DM's fault.

The flats' management company have put in an insurance claim for damage to the laundry room and asked my DM to give them a list of clothes ruined and their value, which DM did, estimating the value of the clothes. The insurance company have paid out for repairs to the laundry room but have rejected DM's claim as she cannot provide receipts for the clothes ruined.

Surely most people don't keep receipts for clothes, especially those that are more than a few months old and normal everyday clothes. DM lost about a third of her clothes and doesn't have a huge amount of spare cash.

Does anyone have any ideas how we can proceed with this claim?

Your mum could try making a small claim against the company from where the tumble dryer was originally purchased. Or to original manufacturer of the tumble dryer. Was the dyer still in warranty? Worth a shot. Does your mum still have the damaged clothes? If not get them back or photos. You stand better chance with these sorts of claims if you put in a reasonable and fair claim taking into account wear and tear and age of the clothes. Or, maybe instead of claiming ask for a small ex gratia gesture of good will type payment from manufacturer or retailer. May be a solution.

I was thinking whether we could ask for a small ex gratia gesture of goodwill either from insurance company or the management company. Or maybe the manufacturer.

Unfortunately we were unable to take photos of the damage to her clothes as the tumble dryer, with them in, was taken away for investigation purposes. And we weren't allowed in the laundry room after the fire as it was too dangerous. It was a Hotpoint dryer, but not one of the dodgy ones. She had checked the lint thing before turning it on and that was clean. She turned the machine on and it literally went bang! Luckily she left the room as the laundry room was completely gutted

Well I'd take it higher to be honest. Put a complaint in. Cos no of course no one's going to have receipts for clothes!
I know someone whose company paid out in a fire no questions asked so I know it happens

Does your mum have any photos of her wearing the clothes that were damaged? The Financial Ombudsman website has plenty of examples of cases where people can't produce receipts but do have photos or bank statements showing transactions at shops where they said they'd bought things, and their complaints re. non payment were upheld.

If you can get a few photos or bank statements showing purchases from places where your mum says she'd bought the items from, I would resubmit the claim and point out that the dryer was on when it blew up- as no-one runs empty tumble dryer cycles, they must accept that there were clothes in the machine. As your mum has made her claim in good faith and produced reasonable documentation to validate it, please reconsider. Point out the examples on the Financial Ombudsman website as well- they don't want an FO complaint as it costs them something like £700 right off the bat, although you do have to exhaust the Insurers' internal complaints procedure before you go there.

I think you can ask! You really need to ask for photos as proof if you want to approach retailer or manufacturer. Even better the damaged clothes themselves. Someone will have them and it will show contents of the machine. I used to work for major High Street retailer yrs ago, dealing with these exact type of claims.

You really need to prove what was in there. Or, if it will suffice, ask either entity you approach for a £50 gesture of good will. It depends on how well the appliance was looked after,was it well maintained/ serviced. How old was it?

Ime if you put in a reasonable modest claim it is more likely to be paid. I am in no way tarring your mum with this brush, but I was always rather suspicious of all the clothing claims I received!!!! Usually , upon inspection of the actual damaged garments there was a discrepancy!

Good luck op.

Do you think as part of the investigation of the tumble dryer photos would have been taken of the clothes? So would the insurance company already have seen these?

I know some people did get their clothes back from some of the other machines that were in the laundry, but don't know how damaged they were, as would have been in there a few days, including being in washing machines, as no-one was allowed in the room until given the all clear by the fire brigade. And even then the residents weren't allowed in, only the risk assessors, the house manager and the contractors, as none of the machines were usable, the ceiling had come down and the windows were blown out.
But my mum was told the machine she had used was taken away for investigation purposes as it was that one that had caused the fire, it exploded.

Absolutely the clothes in the dryer would have been examined. I would be confident the insurance company would have either the photos/the garments or a full report from the assessor outlining what was in machine and extent of damage.

Can I pls ask how much your mum was claiming and the reason the insurance company have given for rejecting her claim?

Has any other resident been successful in their claims?

They would want the clothes as would want to see labels, or anything that may say do not tumble dry etc.

The tumble dryer did not even start, so don't think it would make a difference what was actually in it.

I can't remember the exact amount she was claiming, but it wasn't huge. Think the load included about 3 pairs of trousers and about 10 lightish weight tops, plus underwear, although don't think my mum was claiming for that. DM doesn't have a vast array of clothes but does tend to buy higher quality items, so maybe the insurance company thought some of the items seemed too expensive eg one pair of trousers may have been about £70

The reason they gave was that she hadn't provided receipts for anything. One person has managed to claim for a couple of items as they did have receipts, assume they must have been recent purchases, or they hoard stuff. Unfortunately in this case my DM is not a hoarder. If DF had been still alive, we might have had a chance. Ironically, just before the fire I had had a sort out of DF's old paperwork and shredded it!

Oh op. I think ask your mum to approach manufacturer. Claim amount seems reasonable to me. Provide as much info as you can.

Or, you can challenge ins company. If your mum paid for clothes by debit or credit card, statements would be acceptable.

Either way if you could ask ins company where your mums clothes are now as you want them back ASAP.

Hopefully they will make a payment yr to your mum.

Good luck.

Op, when you ask for your mums clothes /property back, do it in writing. Then you will have a paper trail.

Thank you Elizabeth. Think my mum will have some bank/credit card statements, just not the actual store receipts.

Will also see if we can get the clothes back, or at least some photos.

It would be great if she can get some money, although I am just so grateful she had the sense to get out of the room when the tumble dryer went bang (she thought the fuse had gone) because it would appear it burst into flames soon after, and she might not be here if she hadn't got out so quickly. It is very frightening how quickly something like that can happen

No worries. Yes op. Main thing is your mum is ok. PM me if you need to clarify anything or not sure.

With a bit of luck your mums clothes would have been lost/destroyed by insurers or their representatives. In which case you can argue that they have now removed your ability to prove beyond all reasonable doubt what was in there. That could work in your favour. Your mums property could have been disposed off without her consent or worse, lost ,which shows incompetence on behalf of those tasked with securing it. In that case someone needs to pay your mum for her ' lost' clothes. But, you need paper/email chain now. Insurers won't pay so now you want your property back.

Also, written confirmation that a fault in the dryer was the cause would also help your case enormously. If it was an electrical fault in building manufacturer not responsible.

Should the fire have been caused by an electrical issue, and as direct result of poor maintenance, electrical safety certs not up to date etc i would be looking directly at the organisation responsible for that side of things to reimburse my mother for her losses.

The same process applies to any frozen food claims. So for anyone who sees this if you have a tumble dryer fire/ washing machine flooded kitchen, freezer broke down with all my food inside it etc you must take photos as soon as is safe to do so before anything is disturbed. This way you can prove what was in it, the damage done etc, the costs you will now incur as the result of your losses.

Op,should the dryer prove to have been at fault here ,I would like to think that the manufacturers of the faulty unit would feel it appropriate to make a gesture to your mother, for the unnecessary stress and inconvenience caused to her by their faulty malfunctioning product, if nothing else.

Before you do any of the above ,be sure that your mum used the dryer in accordance to manufacturers instructions. By that I mean the dryer was not overloaded at the time of malfunction or that any clothes in there that were not suitable for tumble dry.

So, your mum has a few options yet OP.

Good luck love.

Elizabeth I have not managed to get much further at the moment as the house manager has not been available in the last few days, so I have been unable to get contact details.

However, my DM has been doing some investigating at the flats. She has found out that 2 other ladies haven't yet received any insurance monies for their claims either. One of them lost clothes too, assume their laundry was in the tumble dryer adjacent to the one my mum was using. The other lady lost a trolley she used to transport her laundry in as she has mobility issues.

DM also had a chat with the residents' representative, who was allowed in the laundry room after the fire. She told DM that DM's clothes were strewn all over the floor, so assume they were blown there when the tumble dryer exploded (am so grateful DM got out when she did) But we don't know what happened to her clothes after that. The lady who lost her trolley asked if she could see it, and was told no as it was fire damaged. And again we don't know what happened to that.

Hi Op, ok, have the other residents with claims not had a final decision and still waiting for payout? Or, have their claims been rejected also? If the first it may be advantageous to wait and see what happens to them.

Am I right that neither your mum or the other residents have been able to establish where all the damaged clothes, trolley etc are? Have you asked the insurance company where they are? Who removed them from the laundry room? What did they do with them? These are all questions you need to ask in writing and you need a response in writing.

Assuming that no one gets paid by insurance, that the damaged items have disappeared never to be seen again and that the dryer was confirmed as found to be at fault ( insurance company should have a report determining cause ) I would suggest that you write to manufacturer of the appliance, detailing everything that you have gathered in writing, including the report determining blame and see if they will pay out it make a gratia payment.

You really need something in writing from whoever cleared the laundry room out detailing where all those items went. You also need something from the insurance company confirming what they found to be the cause of the fire and why they rejected your mums element. They have clearly paid out to someone to repair the damage so they have accepted that part of the claim. You need to establish on what basis. If the dryer was not the 'cause' the manufacturer will unlikely pay out. There ultimately has to be a definitive cause and what ever the cause was is where you need to direct your claim. Looks like the insurance company provide buildings cover only for the whole block. It may be that clothes come under contents and therefore not covered. You really need to look at the policy document for level of cover.

Basically you need to establish and verify the cause and also then be able to demonstrate what your mum lost as a result.

Finally, if your mum has her own contents insurance for her flat you could try them but it's a long shot.

You can only approach the manufacturer if you can prove that their faulty product resulted in your loss iyswim.

You can only approach the insurance company if the policy you ( block) have taken out covers that for which you are claiming and all policy requirements and policy holders responsibilities adhered to.