Liberty Home insurance:Shed = No Cover

After weeks of chasing the written letter arrived.

Liberty insurance will NOT cover you, for home insurance, if you have any outbuildings that are not stone/concrete/brick.

This includes any wood shed, those industrial plastic sheds OR steel clad sheds.
Also includes carports.

You will not receive cover if you disclose this and obviously you are not meant to hide this fact. They will ask you if your buildings are made from "Standard Building Materials" so you might honestly answer "yes" but only concrete etc are standard, nothing else.

They just refused to renew our insurance solely based on this fact.

Considering the vast majority of new sheds are no longer concrete/brick/stone, it's worth bearing this in mind

NUTLEY BOY

Deleted User wrote: »

After weeks of chasing the written letter arrived.

Liberty insurance will NOT cover you, for home insurance, if you have any outbuildings that are not stone/concrete/brick.

This includes any wood shed, those industrial plastic sheds OR steel clad sheds.
Also includes carports.

You will not receive cover if you disclose this and obviously you are not meant to hide this fact. They will ask you if your buildings are made from "Standard Building Materials" so you might honestly answer "yes" but only concrete etc are standard, nothing else.

They just refused to renew our insurance solely based on this fact.

Considering the vast majority of new sheds are no longer concrete/brick/stone, it's worth bearing this in mind

That seems to be an unreasonable underwriting attitude.

OP please also now bear in mind that you must declare to any new insurer that LIBERTY have refused renewal of your policy. That is a new material fact for you to declare :mad:

NUTLEY BOY

NUTLEY BOY wrote: »

That seems to be an unreasonable underwriting attitude.

OP please also now bear in mind that you must declare to any new insurer that LIBERTY have refused renewal of your policy. That is a new material fact for you to declare :mad:

We have and liberty confirmed that this was the sole reason

NUTLEY BOY

NUTLEY BOY wrote: »

That seems to be an unreasonable underwriting attitude.

Considering it was totally accidental that we actually asked what "standard" was. Up to that point they were happily proceeding and did not ask us to clarify.

I would be more interested in the number of people potentially uninsured, based on this

To Elland Back

Fairly much industry standard to ask "Are any part of the buildings built of brick stone or concrete and roofed with slate, tile, concrete or other incombustible material"

Doubtful then that it's industry standard to deny cover for a carport or shed, which is corrugated steel on concrete base?

They also confirmed that it relates to industrial standard plastics and wood

To Elland Back

Deleted User wrote: »

Doubtful then that it's industry standard to deny cover for a carport or shed, which is corrugated steel on concrete base?

They also confirmed that it relates to industrial standard plastics and wood

It generally would be the case though. Very unusual that they would refuse to renew rather than exclude the shed. Can I ask if you were using the shed for a business or solely for domestic use?

To Elland Back

To Elland Back wrote: »

It generally would be the case though. Very unusual that they would refuse to renew rather than exclude the shed. Can I ask if you were using the shed for a business or solely for domestic use?

Home insurance so domestic. There is nothing more to it than I posted. A concrete floored, steel framed, steel clad shed and car port 25 metres from the house

To Elland Back

Deleted User wrote: »

Home insurance so domestic. There is nothing more to it than I posted. A concrete floored, steel framed, steel clad shed and car port 25 metres from the house

If it is an open ended car port, there's your problem. It's the same as farmers not being able to get storm cover on open ended hay sheds. High winds get in, nowhere to go and then lift the roof. I'd say that's it

To Elland Back

To Elland Back wrote: »

If it is an open ended car port, there's your problem. It's the same as farmers not being able to get storm cover on open ended hay sheds. High winds get in, nowhere to go and then lift the roof. I'd say that's it

\nope. Quite plain on phone and in letter. It's the material

To Elland Back

Deleted User wrote: »

\nope. Quite plain on phone and in letter. It's the material

Well, it is that too as per the definition of 'standard' construction I gave earlier. Ask a broker to hunt an alternative for you

To Elland Back

To Elland Back wrote: »

Well, it is that too as per the definition of 'standard' construction I gave earlier. Ask a broker to hunt an alternative for you

Yes but my point was that they did not care until we queried what this was defined as.

It also applied to a barna shed. If you have a tool shed that is wood or metal you will NOT be covered by them

The car port was not even mentioned by them, it was the shed

The AA were more than happy to take our business (at the same rate)

MugMugs

Quite shocked by this. Would you consider lodging a complaint and pushing it as far as the ombudsman? It's a given that the vast majority will have standard garden sheds as outbuildings.

It's quite misleading if they're not telling you at inception that they're not going to cover your outbuildings.

MugMugs

MugMugs wrote: »

Quite shocked by this. Would you consider lodging a complaint and pushing it as far as the ombudsman? It's a given that the vast majority will have standard garden sheds as outbuildings.

It's quite misleading if they're not telling you at inception that they're not going to cover your outbuildings.

I did lodge a complaint, which is why they sent the written reply, but would the ombudsman even be bothered by this?

MugMugs

It costs you nothing only a bit of time to fill in the complaint form.

I've seen them get involved in less to be honest and the least that could happen is they ensure that customers are aware of what they're doing.

homer911

Looks like I'll need a new insurer when my renewal comes around. Running the risk of them not honouring any claim as the result of having a wooden shed isn't worth it.


Have been too lazy up to now to move due to the hassle of insuring jewellery..

the_pen_turner

im sure they must be breaking some kind of consumer law here
what about false advertising or even fraud

they are taking your money to provide a service when something bad happens.
when the bad thing happens they then say sorry no sorry we didn't know
surely they must have the responsibility to ask properly

To Elland Back

Their policy document is fairly clear on buildings needing to be standard construction. See definitions of Buildings on page 2. It also defines Outbuildings which DO NOT have to be standard construction, so sheds, greenhouses and summerhouses etc are fully covered. A car port does not fall under this definition and therefore excluded. I'm not working my way through a quote, but I would think the assumptions match the policy, so it is likely you confirmed everything was standard when you took out the policy

https://www.libertyinsurance.ie/assets/Uploads/Home-Insurance-Policy-Document.pdf

To Elland Back

To Elland Back wrote: »

Their policy document is fairly clear on buildings needing to be standard construction. See definitions of Buildings on page 2. It also defines Outbuildings which DO NOT have to be standard construction, so sheds, greenhouses and summerhouses etc are fully covered. A car port does not fall under this definition and therefore excluded. I'm not working my way through a quote, but I would think the assumptions match the policy, so it is likely you confirmed everything was standard when you took out the policy

https://www.libertyinsurance.ie/assets/Uploads/Home-Insurance-Policy-Document.pdf

Do I really have to scan the letter before you accept that the shed and shed alone failed??

MugMugs

Deleted User wrote: »

Do I really have to scan the letter before you accept that the shed and shed alone failed??

I don't doubt your letter and the contents therein however, To Elland Back does have a point. It appears your letter and their commentary therein runs contrary to their definitions.

Which is very worrying.

Liberty Insurance wrote:

b Buildings – the private home at the address shown in the schedule. This includes domestic outbuildings, garages, greenhouses, solar panels, swimming pools, tennis courts, hot tubs, septic tanks, fuel tanks, terraces, patios, decked areas, driveways, footpaths, walls, fences, gates, hedges and fixtures and fittings all within the boundaries of the home. Your home must be built of brick, stone or concrete and roofed with slate, tiles or asphalt unless described differently under any endorsement (other than garden sheds, greenhouses and summer houses).

MugMugs

MugMugs wrote: »

I don't doubt your letter and the contents therein however, To Elland Back does have a point. It appears your letter and their commentary therein runs contrary to their definitions.

Which is very worrying.

I agree it's worrying, it's the assumption that I didn't syate that we had a big feck off garden shed out back.

As I staeted originally I repeatedly asked if this applied to barna sheds etc to be told that it did

To Elland Back

Deleted User wrote: »

Do I really have to scan the letter before you accept that the shed and shed alone failed??

In post 8, you also said it was a car port, which is not a shed, it is a garage and not standard construction as per Liberty's definition

To Elland Back

To Elland Back wrote: »

In post 8, you also said it was a car port, which is not a shed, it is a garage and not standard construction as per Liberty's definition

OK read these words.
---
The shed failed, just the shed nothing else.
I asked them to confirm if this would be the case were it wood or plastic and I was told "Yes". This also relates to general garden sheds, in their letter.

Conformed on phone that NO (repeat NO) outbuilding can be of non-standard material
---

The shed is made of steal superstructure with steel cladding and she stopped me there and stated that this was "Non standard" and entire property cold not be covered. Did not even get to mention that there was a carport adjacent to it.

Christ but some posters on this site just love trying to blame an OP

MugMugs

I'm genuinely not trying to upset you. I am genuinely concerned that an Insurer have written to you with one thing yet are selling their customers a completely different thing.

Listen, to all intents and purposes, if that letter you have is a Final Response, it's worth taking to the Ombudsman for them to deal with because it sounds like Liberty aren't playing fair.

It may be of no benefit to you but it would be to others.

To Elland Back

Deleted User wrote: »

Christ but some posters on this site just love trying to blame an OP

Only trying to advise you

BTW, you've gone with AA who were only too happy to take your business, as you say. Take a look at the assumptions they've signed you up to, particularly with regard to construction and previously being refused insurance

https://home-insurance.theaa.ie/home-insurance/viewAssumptions.do

hognef

To Elland Back wrote: »

Only trying to advise you

BTW, you've gone with AA who were only too happy to take your business, as you say. Take a look at the assumptions they've signed you up to, particularly with regard to construction and previously being refused insurance

https://home-insurance.theaa.ie/home-insurance/viewAssumptions.do

Link not working for me.

To Elland Back

hognef wrote: »

Link not working for me.

Yeah, tried it myself there again and it's timed out. Anyway, the assumptions are worth a read