making insurance claim on household policy: procedure?

El Stuntman

please excuse the naive tone of this post but I've (luckily) never had any dealings with insurance companies before

came down to the kitchen this morning while Mrs S was having her morning shower and noticed water pouring out of the ceiling. 'Bollix' says I and roars up to her to get out. She, somewhat peeved, has instructed me to 'sort it out'. So here I am....

What's the general procedure for making a claim against a household insurance policy? Do I contact the company first or get a workman in?


We've had the policy for about 4 years with no claims

Again, apologies for the level of ignorance displayed in this post!

Hitchhiker's Guide to...

presume you would be best off contacting the insurance company to ask them [sorry for the lack of more imaginative advice]

although would you know anyone who could give you a quick free estimate in case it is less than your insurance excess?

the insurance company might even have a list of people they work with to repair damages like this.

pow wow

Call the claims number given in your policy and explain the situation. Dependent on the extent of the damage (and costs involved) they'll either tell you to get estimates, get it fixed, or wait for their assessor to pop out. I had a flood in my apartment a few years ago and they insisted on sending an assessor, but he did at least come the next day so it was sorted pretty quickly.

XJR

El Stuntman wrote: »

please excuse the naive tone of this post but I've (luckily) never had any dealings with insurance companies before

came down to the kitchen this morning while Mrs S was having her morning shower and noticed water pouring out of the ceiling. 'Bollix' says I and roars up to her to get out. She, somewhat peeved, has instructed me to 'sort it out'. So here I am....

What's the general procedure for making a claim against a household insurance policy? Do I contact the company first or get a workman in?


We've had the policy for about 4 years with no claims

Again, apologies for the level of ignorance displayed in this post!

The insured has an obligation to mitigate their losses so don't delay in getting someone out to fix it. Assuming your covered for flooding / escape of water and the cost of repair isnt ridiculous you should be in the clear.

If you're worried about it then calling the claims line is not a bad idea as the often have a panel of plumbers electricians etc that they can reccomend.

Either way its an everyday event and despite what most people think paying out in the event of a genuine claim is not a problem.