Hi I have put a claim in for my laptop which accidently fell from my table when my son snagged his foot in the power lead. The claim was refered to a loss adjuster and the laptop went for inspection by CIIS Ltd. I have today received a letter which I would appreciate if someone could help me reply to.

I will start by typing the full letter body (names ommited obviously)

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I refer to the above and confirm our experts, CIIS ltd, have now provided a report following the inspection of your damaged laptop.

In addition to two keys being removed from the keyboard, the entire lcd screen and WLAN aerial leads are separated from the lid. This damage is excessive given the claim circumstances described. The DVD cabinet fixing screw has been removed as have the manufacturers serial number identification label and Windows Vista OS License number..

External inspection of the HDD found the original Vista OS to have been replaced with Win 7. The hdd records very little use this year. The last date recorded for a very short period of time was 14th july 2010, however, prior to this there was a failed boot on 23 Feb 2010. The last time the system was fully booted and used was Feb 16th 2010.

The information obtained differs to that given at claim notification. I understand the laptop was used regularly before the claim with no previous inspections being carried out.

In view of our findings. I would appreciate your written response to this issue raised within the next fourteen days.

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Ok to answer some of the questions.

1. The laptop is a sony vaio z11wn the screen is ultra thin and the casing is very shallow. The screen popped out when it hit the floor and the WLAN aerial cables where obviously attached to this and they where hanging from the laptop (they where still attached at the other end)

2. I had no record of the dvd cabinet fixing screw ever being removed.

3. The serial has worn off so was peeled off when I installed win 7 so was the vista os license number.

4. Since installing win 7 I have discovered ubuntu! obviously this quickly replaced win 7 in the form off a live USB (I was too scared to install it to hdd as I dont understand partitioning etc)

5. The two keys where occasionally came loose. One I have found under the table after the laptop was collected im sure the other is around here somewhere.

6. The contact I actually has with CIIS was very unprofessional. They said DHL would collect it Friday and I would need to supply a box. They then phoned and said DHL will collect Tuesday and they will bring the box. In the end a very casual (with stains on his t-shirt) man turned up and collected it leaving a badly filled out collection form with CIIS on the top.

I was just hoping someone could give me some advice on what to do next. Should I ask for a different inspection? Will the numbered items above be acceptable or will they continue to interrogate me?

Any Help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks

I'm not sure where they are coming from, what are they trying to say, if they have something, just say it!

Their queries are irrelevant and in a nutshell they are trying to put you off making a claim, suggesting some wrong doing on your behalf.

Assuming cover is correct, you have a contract for your contents for replacement/cash settlement if they have been damaged as a result of an incident covered under the policy, it doesn't matter when you last used it, what operating system you have used.It's your property which you insure if they have evidence to suggest a breakdown prior to the incident, they need to prove that.

As for the damage not holding upto the circustances, well, lets face it you can break your leg tripping over a daisy, you can drop a plate on the floor, it can break into peices or land the right way and be fine. Nothing is constant, no table to floor ratio is the same in any house, there are too many parameters to consider.

Hi, Thanks for your reply. My policy covers new for old on accidental damage. This includes laptops (I checked before taking the policy out).

I am going to write with the details I used in my first post and add the part from your post about damage and what OS I use is my own choice.

This is my first ever insurance claim so didnt think I would get this much hassle. Will post my reply when I have finished it.

Thanks

They're trying to check the validity of your claim to make sure you are not defrauding them. A little bit of an inconvenience for genuine claimers, but a big problem for fraudsters that cannot back up their claim.

Just answer the questions honestly and you'll be fine.

Hi, Replied explaining the above info and they have accepted the claim and are going to payout. Just waiting for the company to call back with a replacement model as they cant seem to source something of equal spec. My laptop was a z11wn/b which isnt made no more so hopefully they will offer something similar. Thanks for everyones help!