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I’m with CIS, £80 odd PA. Not had any claims yet, I avoid certain types who are likely to make a false claim. I did have one sausage who contacted me some 3 weeks later for a rip in flooring, like Oh yeah 😯
Re: Public Liabiltity Insurance
In the light of present settlement climate I question wether £1m of PL cover is sufficient. Most contracts require a minimum of £2m. I had a gas contract wanted £10m.
Yeah and a lot of insurance companies are not interested beyond the £2M mark and it starts to rocket in price above that too.
On another note I’ve only had a few claims levelled at the company in the past few years, not one of which was justified, but I have taken a very hard line on it of late. I will question the validity of the claim and put some effort into proving that the claim is invalid and, I’m just as tough as the customer is on it as I suspect that 90{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} of claims against us are probably a load of horse manure. My success rate of 100{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} speaks for itself. 😉
Torn lino, was the lino installed in accordance with the manufacturers instructions madame? Virtually no lino installation is, it’s supposed to be glued to the floor so it can’t move and tear.
Scratched flooring due to a toolbox, look about on the internet, the last one I had was a punter claiming we’d scratched an Amtico floor so I got the impact figures in lb pre sq. inch and proved that we could not have caused the damage, warranty claim against Amtico. 😉
As for hoses etc., well I just get the engineer back ASAP armed with a digital camera, they really go ape when you start taking photos of the damage. Good for inspection work too and saves a lot of hassles. But when they see that the evidence is going to be presented in that way a lot of them suddenly have a change of heart about claiming you.
You just have to be as ruthless as the punters I’m afraid or some of them will take you for a ride.
Thus far (touch wood) not a single successful claim in over 8 years.
K.
Re: Public Liabiltity Insurance
we have to have 5 mill of cover, its very costley and no use whatsoever for ripped lino ect as the first £150.00 is our cost anyway. Even if we did claim it will only add to our premiums in future years.
It will be handy for a large claim but I never want to be in that position anyway, another expense that will never go away or reduce……
ted
Re: Public Liabiltity Insurance
Martin wrote:What tips can anyone give though to avoid the claim for new lino and save our policy excess and future premium increases in the first place?
Be careful! 😉
Martin wrote:Does anyone out there get the customer to sign a disclaimer before work begins?
No point, useless in a court as you accept the risk as soon as you try to remove the appliance or enter the house to carry out work. They do not protect you at all however they do ensure that the customer cannot argue that you informed them of the risk.
The rules of the game are that you as a “competent” person accept the liability for your own workmanship and that includes gaining access to the appliance and your conduct in the house. Hence my advice to anyone and I rigidly enforce it with the engineers is that if there is even the slightest risk of damage they walk away, do not attempt it.
Sad, but it’s the culture we live in I’m afraid. 😕
Martin wrote:If so how do you word such a priceless document?
I have one if you want a copy I’ll post it here or email it to you on Monday, just remind me to do it. 😕
Martin wrote:How could I possibly have avoided what happened to me ( see first posting) in the first place?
You can’t, but you can defend it vigourously should the need arise although I’ll admit that’s a tough one. The first thing I’d want done is a site inspection by one of the engineers with a camera and go from there.
K.
Sent by email as well, but the body of the text I used is below. Basically the trick is to put the onus on the customer and that it is at their behest that we continue:
The Owner/Occupier
Dear Sir Or Madam,
Our engineer has determined that the manner of either your appliance installation or the fittings surrounding it is installed in such a way that damage may be caused by attempting to remove it. For this reason our engineer must decline to attempt to remove and repair your appliance.
Although we can, at your request, remove the appliance please be aware that we are acting upon your instruction not of our own volition. Our engineer will have already made the attempt to remove the appliance and cannot safely extract it without the risk of damage being caused to carry out any necessary repairs. Acting on instruction from his superiors, the engineer cannot proceed with this work without your permission to attempt to remove the appliance and we would appreciate if you could sign the copy of this letter as proof that you have given this instruction.
Please be aware that this in no way negates your rights as a customer of N. W. Appliance Repairs Ltd., manufacturer or insurer.
Sincerely,
On Behalf Of N. W. Appliance Repairs
Attending Engineer …………………………………………………………………….
Customer …………………………………………………………………….
Date …………………………………………………………………….In all honesty though, once they see this they usually tell us to leave it and that they’ll call the installer back! 😉
K.
Re: Public Liabiltity Insurance
Martin, I have something in a similar vain to this, and it does make the customer think a bit. ❓ 💡 ❓
They usualy sign, I give them a copy and proceed with the job. Sometimes a problem arises ie some sort of damage, and the customers old man comes on the phone bleeting about the damage. We then point out in a nice kind way that his other half had signed a disclaimer, and this usualy shuts them up with an appology.
😳 😳
OT
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