Insurance quote

[rooella]

I am looking for some advice regarding a dispute with our home insurance company.

We had a leak in our en suite which resulted in water damage downstairs. Thankfully it doesn't seem to bad but caused enough damage that we decided to claim on our insurance. The problem is the quote we received from the plumber is much higher than the insurance company have offered. While the plumbers (he seems to have quoted some work that they say they won't cover) quote does seem a bit high the amount the insurance company has offered is definitely not enough to cover even the basic the work required.

The plumber has said once the floor tiles are lifted it will damage wall tiles so they will need replaced and the ones we have are no longer available. The company said they won't pay for this and would only replace the ones damaged resulting in a miss match.

But even without them paying for wall tile replacement what they're offering isn't enough to cover the other work!

Now I'm wondering where we go from there. They have offered to send their own contractors but I've heard so many horror stories and I'm worried about the standard of work they'll provide. My husband asked the adviser if he'd be happy with what he's suggesting and he said no but he'd fix additional issues at his own cost! I've never had to use insurance before and I'm so angry at the way they have spoken to us.

Hope this all made sense.

I would get 2 more quotes, itemising what has to be done and why.

Yes, avoid using their contractors if possible: they could be fantastic, but they'll be working in your house, but you're not their customer, the insurers are.

Don't worry about arguing with insurers, or having to insist on talking to a boss, or complaining ,clearly but insistently in an email. Try to get higher than the call centre, iyswim.

Pita, but you may well succeed.
Complain about advisor saying they'd fix some issues at their own expense- this is not what we buy insurance for.

Get more than just the one quote. Go back to insurance with the other quotes, if what the insurance company is offering still doesn't cover the cost to repair the damage (not the cost of replacing other tiles that haven't been damaged, I'm afraid that is not something insurance companies would cover unless you could get a quote that matches the tiles but is alot more than replacing the whole lot iyswim) complain. Complain. Complain. Ask to speak to a manager.
I used to work in home insurance, although not in claims.

As others have said you definitely want 2-3 quotes from different contractors if the claims team are disputing the payout.
The tile thing may be an issue, insurance is there to put you in the state you were pre loss, having all new tile sets rather than replacing would have to be argued to be the state you were previously in, odds and sods aesthetically isn't acceptable compared to pre loss.

The thing you'll have to be aware of, is you will still have an excess on the claim and it will affect future rates, of course without knowing how much, the decision to pursue is down to you. It definitely sounds like you have a case however to pursue and not use their contractors.

Most insurance contractors will have to guarantee the work, which you don't always get with some traders. Might be worth checking the guarantee period to give you piece of mind. And normally only very high end policies will pay out for matching sets.

Thank you for all your replies. I'll arrange some other quotes. It's so frustrating because the guy we've been dealing with has left us hanging for weeks and is now on annual leave. The guy covering his annual leave has been quite rude and won't listen to what we're saying.

I have the premium home insurance that is supposed to replace matching sets however this apparently does not include tiles.

Hopefully getting some other quotes will help.

Look at the wording of the policy to find out whether there are any limitations on extent of repairs you're covered for. You can't expect them to redecorate a wall to match a new floor for example but I'd imagine they can't get away with limiting what they'll pay for if it is as described in your OP.

Very standard to get multiple quotes too. Aim for 3.

Always argue with your insurer if they aren't being realistic and probably threatening the ombudsman at some point if things don't go well will get the attention of those who can make the decisions.