Home Insurance Claims FAQ
What should I do if I need to make a claim on my home insurance policy?
Do I need to report incidents to the police?
Do I have to accept an amount offered to me by my insurance company?
What is Legal cover?
As soon as an incident occurs you should call your insurance company's claims help line asap. The contact number should be found in your policy documentation. If you can not find the number but know the name of your insurer click here to find your home insurer's claims help line number.
Should you require any assistance or advice please contact Plan Insurance straight away on 0870 066 0026.
When contacting your home insurer it is important that you have your policy number to hand.
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Theft, attempted theft and malicious damage incidents must be reported to the police within 48 hours. Please note the crime reference number as it will be required when you notify us of the incident.
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You do not have to accept an offer made to you by your insurer if you are not satisfied with it.
For example the wear and tear of your possession may be much less than the insurer or loss adjuster has taken into account in their valuation. Items such as jewellery or antiques may have appreciated in value more than they have realised. If an item is separately insured, do not accept anything less than the specific amount detailed in the policy. If you do not want a replacement item which is being offered to you, you should demand cash. If cash is offered, do not accept anything but the full replacement value.
If you would like to challenge an insurer’s valuation and claim settlement offer you need to build your case as to why their offer is insufficient. They may ask you for photos of the possession that demonstrate it was in excellent condition, and adverts for similar items that support your valuation.
Once you have built your case you can then go back to your insurance company and ask them to re-evaluate their offer. Your claim advisor at Plan Assist will help you pursue the matter, in order to resolve it as quickly as possible.
However if their offer if your insurer’s offer is still unsatisfactory to you, you have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Their address is:
Financial Ombudsman Service,
South Quay Plaza 2,
183 Marsh Wall,
London,
E14 9SR.
Telephone: 0845 080 1800
www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk
The Financial Ombudsman Service will handle most complaints you might have, but there are some instances that fall outside their authority. The Ombudsman's decision is binding upon us, but you are free to reject it without affecting your legal rights.
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Plan Assist’s Legal Cover provides assistance to recover uninsured losses (such as excess), medical losses or loss of earnings. We will provide up to £50,000 for legal costs to pursue a case, and up to £10,000 worth of cover to defend against any motoring prosecutions (N.B. excluding drink/drug-related offences).
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