Hello - first time poting here but I wondered if anyone could help.

We made a claim for a laptop 4 weeks ago after our son knocked a glass of apple juice into it. Besides being interrogated and spoken down to, they have offered us a settlement far lower than the item is worth.

I don't really know what my rights are here? My husband seems to think if we dispute that theye will retract the offer and we won't receive anything?

We had a Compaq 6715s bought for £620 2 years ago. This laptop still retails for between £500 and £680 depending on whether you buy it abroad etc. The shop we originally bought it from still sells it too, for £550 (though it isn't in stock and had been on sale previously).

Our insurers have offered us £430 minus our £50 excess. Or a Compaq 610, worth £430. If we agree to either we will be receiving only half of what we originally paid for them laptop!

Is this the way it is supposed to work? My mother has been with these same insures for years (and recommended them highly) and has made a claim for a laptop herself. She received the full price she paid for the laptop?!

Do I argue - or is it a lost cause? Though what I would prefer to do is tell them to go take a running jump off somewhere....

I'm surprised you could claim for this as liquid was spilt on it by accident! I don't think you necessarily have to accept the claim, I'd get together a list of current prices in the market and send it off to the insurers and contest their settlement offer, and hopefully they might offer you something more.

I can understand the annoyance of this, as they are obviously offering far less than the laptop was bought for.

But you say you did buy it 2 years ago. Laptops have a pretty short life and the insurer would probably argue that that is a fair amount considering the depreciation of the laptop. Comparing it with the retail price of a brand new laptop of the same make is not really much good because your laptop is used and 2 years old, so will be worth less than any identical brand new one. Remember, as annoying as it is, the insurance is there to give you the value for the item as it was when it got damaged, and not its value when brand new.

It's like if you buy a car for £10k and 5 years later you it's written off or stolen and you claim, you wouldn't expect a £10k settlement would you. It's the same with the laptop unfortunately.

If you want to compare prices to dispute the insurer's valuation, it might be better searching for used laptops of that sort, not brand new ones, because laptops do have a pretty short life so their value goes down quickly.

There is no harm in disputing an offer by your insurers, whilst they may not up their offer they won't withdraw or refuse to pay you out.

Unless you have a 'New For Old' policy then I'd say that offer was very fair, a laptop has a defined lifespan, 4 - 5 years, if yours was 2 years old then any offer over £310 I'd say was fair.

Mossy

I'm surprised you could claim for this as liquid was spilt on it by accident!

It's called accidental damage cover.

Besides being interrogated and spoken down to...

That is normal with insurance, they suspect everyone who makes a claim and treat you as guilty of fraud until proven innocent. Sadly we all just have to deal with this patronising rudeness whenever making any kind of insurance claim.

As already said, their offer seems fair considering the age of your laptop, and you can't compare their offer to the price of brand new laptops in your argument as yours was not at all brand new. Feel free to bargain with them if you think they might bend a bit but overall it's a fair offer.

Hi,

Just a quickie (as this claim may already have been completed etc).

Working on behalf of Aviva in regards to repalcing and valuing electrical items, namely laptops and the like.. The value you have been offered appears to be base don a product model which is newer and superior in many specifications to your original model.

How can you dispute a replacement that is BETTER than your original? if you don't wan';t the replacement, you state you have been offered the value of it in cash...

Sounds to me like you just wanted / expected your original machine to be worth more, or you misunderstood the basic concept of your policy.

I know all of what I am saying sounds like a rant, but thats purely because i have to deal with the same sort of thing day in day out; people don't understand their policys (I am not saying its their fault!) and rather than the responsible parties that sell the policy being on the brunt end; its us replacment companies.

In addition to ther above; if you wish to disput ethe value, you will have to dispute the specifications..

Just because I say its better, doesnt mean its suitable for your needs;

Compare the specifications (bearing in mind some trends/moves in particular areas are down to the produces/industry concerned and can not be accomodated for) for your original model vs the model on offer.

If anything is not meeting what you had and is of importance to you, raise this to the replacment company involved (dont suggest a replacement yourself) and ask them to review the offer.

This can work both for and against you though, as if they review the offer there may be cheaper alternatives that are better again in specifications and meet anything specs you raise as issues of concern.

Original Specs:

HP Compaq 6715s specifications. Get the full spec from TechRadar UK

Replacement Specs:

Compaq 610 Notebook PC specifications - HP Small & Medium Business products

Good Luck.