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Insurance dilemma:
I was insured with M&S for many years for the benefits of bike cover then at renewal in 2011 noticed on the declaration I had to sign to confirmed I did not live in an area subject to flooding.
My house has never flooded but next door but four flooded the year before so called to l to inform them – my renewal was then withdrawn.
After a frantic search I took out a policy with 6 bikes covered to £10k at a cost £750 & the company was aware of the flooding. The renewal is £1,542 but when questioned apparently because the house is a barn conversion converted in 1985 & when quoting they asked when the barn was built, & I said unknown, but they needed a date, I said 1850 as a wild guess, so the initial premium should have been £1100 but as payment had been taken before applying the 1850 date they wrote of the extra at the time.
So rang Barclays for a quote.
Asked when the house was built – 1985. Left it at that – I have no idea when barn was built.
Have I been declined before? I said yes by M&S due to flooding of house next door but four but my house has never flooded. Explained further about future plans in place for defences & that a local farmer had confirmed my house has never flooded as other defences overflow relieving the flood risk to my house. The assistant went to the underwriter on four occasions & concluded I was in a dry area & that in the past I wasn’t refused insurance just that the renewal no longer met with M&S’s requirements.
So took out the policy for £380 & bikes covered to £2.5k each unspecified. The documents have now arrived & state I confirmed I have never been flooded or live in a flood risk area & that I have not been declined insurance in the past etc.
I took the assistants name & made a record of the conversation. Would you leave it at that or ring back to confirm cover & possibly risk withdrawal as a different assistant/underwriter adviser may take a different view?
Your postcode says whether you live in a flood risk area (down to sub-street level). My previous insurers wouldn't renew on my new house on that basis. You have been open and honest. To be frank the risk of bike theft is probably vastly higher than the risk of flooding 😉 .
I would ring back, personally, thats because I think insurance is a home for weasels!
M&S did this to me to, wouldnt transfer the policy to my new house, flood risk area, apparently.
Aviva (recommended to me for having more upto date flood information) covered me without a blink, categorically stating I wasn't in a flood risk zone.
Fwiw....I don't think m&s declined YOU insurance (ie for past insurance fraud rather they don't cover your area) That's how I interpret that question anyway 🙂
In a similar-ish situation. Been with M&S for a few years. I live in a new build street that was constructed in 2006. The street has never flooded however as far as I now know the area had been flooded about 20 years ago however my street didn't exist at that time.
So when I first applied for my M&S insurance about 4 years ago, I bunged in the postcode and it said it wasn't in a flood area and everything's been fine since.
I've just got my renewal through from them and when I went to their website to get a new customer quote as a comparison, it declines to offer me coverage because I live in a flood area...
You can check whether or not you are in a flood zone using the EA's flood maps, [url= http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/default.aspx ]here[/url]. But as said, for the most likely things you will claim for (e.g. theft) it shouldn't matter if you were to make a claim. Unfortunately I think each time you come to renew you might have to go through this process, until all of the underwriters come to some agreement on more consistent use of the flood maps, previous history etc.
Boarding Bob, the EA update their flood models all the time and it may be that the Flood Zones have been updated recently, meaning your postcode is now in a flood area, when previously it wasn't. Obviously as a renewal it hasn't been picked up by the M&S system (yet).