Difficult one for you – does anybody have any knowledge on insurance laws in Spain? As some of you may know I was recently the victim of a robbery – my car was broken into and my bag was stolen.
The bag didn't contain any items of specific high-value but obviously replacing my passport is going to cost €200, there was a gold ring which was my late father's and had only been removed from my finger because after a recent minor surgical operation the doctors told me that I needed to take it into a jewellers to be made larger, my mobile phone, and a few other things.
According to the generic clauses at my home contents insurance I'm covered for individual items providing they are not worth more than €400 each. I have another mobile phone which is worth considerably more and this is specifically named item because my broker told me that if it is worth more than €400 then in order for it to be covered for all risks I need to name it on my policy – something that cost an additional €80.
The general wording of my policy booklet states that I am covered for items temporarily removed from the home up to the value of 15% of my total contents insurance – therefore several thousand euros, however it states that there is an individual claim limit for stolen items of €3000.
Having been a loyal customer for several years I totalled up my complete loss including the cost of the ring – but scrap value which would be around €400, the cost of replacing the mobile phone, the passport, the driving licence, the two bags that was stolen, my jacket that was stolen, and a few other things and the total cost of everything including the locksmith Bill to change the locks on my house came to €1900.
I completed the claim form and supplied ample evidence of ownership of all of the items along with a copy of the police report which detailed every single item in the circumstances surrounding the theft.
Apart from the locksmith Bill the insurance company – Ibex rejected my claim on the grounds that I have not got optional cover for items outside of the home.
My broker tells me that I have never had cover for this despite me having records of correspondence with them when I purchased my second mobile phone and their subsequent responses telling me that as the item is worth more than €400 I would need to name that is a specific and pay an extra premium otherwise it would not be covered for all risks. Incidentally, the more expensive phone was not stolen but by the very fact of the conversation I had detailing why I had to pay an additional premium for this phone – because it is worth more than €400 and therefore not covered outside of the home, this confirms that I should indeed have in place cover the individual items below the value of €400.
The insurance company are denying that I have this cover and refusing to settle my claim. The broker is claiming that I was never sold this cover – despite them knowing personally that I never go for cheap and I always buy good quality cover – or what I think is good quality cover.
The insurance company – Ibex over Gibraltar-based company and underwritten by Lloyd's of London. This summary of cover in the back of the policy document does state that certain things such as accidental damage which I also have or optional but it does not state that cover away from the home is optional – it states that I have a total value of 15% of the contents. I spoke to the financial ombudsman in the UK who told me that an insurance company in the UK have a responsibility to make their policies transparent and easy for a layman to follow. However, despite the fact that this policy is underwritten by Lloyd's of London it states clearly that it is governed by Spanish law.
To be honest I am disgusted in the company – they have always charged me considerably more than Spanish companies and I have paid it because the broker – who I once trusted – told me that although the company is more expensive they do not "mess around like a lot of the Spanish companies" when it comes to putting in a claim.
In my opinion the broker has either made an honest mistake in explaining my cover – perhaps through ignorance of the product they are selling, or they have deviously talked me into buying something knowing only too well that I do not have the cover that they told me that I have. Furthermore, the policy documents – schedule and booklet supplied by the actual insurance company are in fact contradicting themselves through various clauses throughout although the general summary and the way that everything reads on the face of it is that I do have the cover as described above.
For me this is more of a moral issue than anything else but I'm not 100% sure what the law is in Spain regarding insurance or who might ultimate complaint would lie with.
Incidentally, also stolen with a spare set of keys to my mother-in-law's house – and her insurance – liberty sent a locksmith within minutes and even invited her to claim for any of her personal possessions that was stolen. Ibex on the other hand seem to use any possible excuse not to pay and although I have now put my complaint in writing I just wondered if anybody here has any more in-depth knowledge about my rights when it comes to home insurance here in Spain.
Sorry to write so much but I wanted to give as much info as I could
thanks in advance everybody!
The bag didn't contain any items of specific high-value but obviously replacing my passport is going to cost €200, there was a gold ring which was my late father's and had only been removed from my finger because after a recent minor surgical operation the doctors told me that I needed to take it into a jewellers to be made larger, my mobile phone, and a few other things.
According to the generic clauses at my home contents insurance I'm covered for individual items providing they are not worth more than €400 each. I have another mobile phone which is worth considerably more and this is specifically named item because my broker told me that if it is worth more than €400 then in order for it to be covered for all risks I need to name it on my policy – something that cost an additional €80.
The general wording of my policy booklet states that I am covered for items temporarily removed from the home up to the value of 15% of my total contents insurance – therefore several thousand euros, however it states that there is an individual claim limit for stolen items of €3000.
Having been a loyal customer for several years I totalled up my complete loss including the cost of the ring – but scrap value which would be around €400, the cost of replacing the mobile phone, the passport, the driving licence, the two bags that was stolen, my jacket that was stolen, and a few other things and the total cost of everything including the locksmith Bill to change the locks on my house came to €1900.
I completed the claim form and supplied ample evidence of ownership of all of the items along with a copy of the police report which detailed every single item in the circumstances surrounding the theft.
Apart from the locksmith Bill the insurance company – Ibex rejected my claim on the grounds that I have not got optional cover for items outside of the home.
My broker tells me that I have never had cover for this despite me having records of correspondence with them when I purchased my second mobile phone and their subsequent responses telling me that as the item is worth more than €400 I would need to name that is a specific and pay an extra premium otherwise it would not be covered for all risks. Incidentally, the more expensive phone was not stolen but by the very fact of the conversation I had detailing why I had to pay an additional premium for this phone – because it is worth more than €400 and therefore not covered outside of the home, this confirms that I should indeed have in place cover the individual items below the value of €400.
The insurance company are denying that I have this cover and refusing to settle my claim. The broker is claiming that I was never sold this cover – despite them knowing personally that I never go for cheap and I always buy good quality cover – or what I think is good quality cover.
The insurance company – Ibex over Gibraltar-based company and underwritten by Lloyd's of London. This summary of cover in the back of the policy document does state that certain things such as accidental damage which I also have or optional but it does not state that cover away from the home is optional – it states that I have a total value of 15% of the contents. I spoke to the financial ombudsman in the UK who told me that an insurance company in the UK have a responsibility to make their policies transparent and easy for a layman to follow. However, despite the fact that this policy is underwritten by Lloyd's of London it states clearly that it is governed by Spanish law.
To be honest I am disgusted in the company – they have always charged me considerably more than Spanish companies and I have paid it because the broker – who I once trusted – told me that although the company is more expensive they do not "mess around like a lot of the Spanish companies" when it comes to putting in a claim.
In my opinion the broker has either made an honest mistake in explaining my cover – perhaps through ignorance of the product they are selling, or they have deviously talked me into buying something knowing only too well that I do not have the cover that they told me that I have. Furthermore, the policy documents – schedule and booklet supplied by the actual insurance company are in fact contradicting themselves through various clauses throughout although the general summary and the way that everything reads on the face of it is that I do have the cover as described above.
For me this is more of a moral issue than anything else but I'm not 100% sure what the law is in Spain regarding insurance or who might ultimate complaint would lie with.
Incidentally, also stolen with a spare set of keys to my mother-in-law's house – and her insurance – liberty sent a locksmith within minutes and even invited her to claim for any of her personal possessions that was stolen. Ibex on the other hand seem to use any possible excuse not to pay and although I have now put my complaint in writing I just wondered if anybody here has any more in-depth knowledge about my rights when it comes to home insurance here in Spain.
Sorry to write so much but I wanted to give as much info as I could
thanks in advance everybody!