Hi there,

I have a serious problem with a current claim. I run a print shop and two large format printers. When i got my business insurance i made it very very clear on the phone the exact make, model, serial numbers of the printers, as well as exactly what they are used for and exactly what we are as a business. They verbally assured me that this was all fine and can be covered. So great.

I got through the paperwork, which says business type 'print shop' on it and i got x amount of cover for electrical equipment and machinery, full breakdown, accidental damage etc.

Sadly a few months later one of my machines break down quite badly and after a lot of time and even more money trying to fix, we opt for insurance.

However insurance turn around and say, Sorry your not covered, we dont cover trade equipment or manufacturing equipment such as your printers.

WTF??, I made it very clear exactly what machines i was using and they said it was covered.

My fault in this matter is that after explaining in great detail all about the machines, i assumed they where covered, so when i got through my paperwork, i did read it, but it turns out a missed a tiny one liner about NOT covering machinery and trade equipment on this policy (which is the exact opposite of what i asked for).

It turns out that despite my long explanation of what i needed, they gave me completely incorrect and useless cover, but because i didnt spot their mistake and raise a point before making a claim, they can not apparantly deny my claim.

We both made mistaked, i was too trusting and didnt check properly, but they actually gave me different cover to what i asked for!

Also, if i clearly have a 'Print Shop' policy, how can they sit there i think im not doing any printing??

If anyone could help me i would be greatly appreciative,

Cheers

Marcus

You need to probe the sales process, by making a subject access request (SAR)under Data Protection to the Insurer/broker that dealt with your original quote/new policy enquiry. Find out the head office address and send the SAR request for the attention of their Compliance/Data protection manager with a £10 cheque (max charge). Ask for a copy of all records held and copies on a CD of any recorded phone calls particularly those related to the sale of the policy.

When you receive the information, have a look at the ICOBS rules on the following link and then make a complaint in writing using the Insurers/Brokers complaints procedure.

http://fsahandbook.info/FSA/html/handbook/ICOBS/5

When an Insurer/broker takes a phone call or face to face enquiry they are supposed to find out what your requiremenst are, ask various questions to obtain all the information they need and then to select the appropriate product/cover that is suitable for your needs.

As above get a SAR done so you can find out what they have down for when you took out the policy.

When your talking about thje small print, are we talking small print, page 37 section c item ii ? or on the key facts/statement of insurance or schedule where it asks you to check your cover?

I think they wanted cover for business interuption caused by breakdown of the printers, they assumed this was included in the premium and did not read their policy documents. This is why they need to see what was actually said, as it could just be a misunderstanding. If the OP did not state exactly what they required or did not understand the options being discussed, they might find this difficult to pursue.

It is possible that the particular policy being offered could not be extended to provide the cover the OP was looking for, so was never discussed. There was just a presumption made about the scope of cover and this was never clarified.

Hi there,

Thanks both of you for your very useful replies. We are more than happy to take matters further and have already been talking about legal proceedings and have already been talking to a solicitor. Making the SAR request for the phone recordings and any other information would be very useful, as i 100% know that i did go into great detail on the phone about what i needed, and they do say that they record all phone calls.

The section that i missed wasn't in the small print, it was in the main section (that is my mistake). I did make it clear that i have manufacturing equipment that i want to cover and this section is simply incorrect, but i assumed it would be correct, as i saw that i did have cover for X amount of elexctrical equipment and machinery.

It is like after explaining i have two printers, they just ticked a box for a computer or something and called it a day thinking that would be ok. This was not even the first time we had insured large format printing machines with them, it was actually our second policy with them insuring these kind of machines, and there is absolutely no way they can say they didn't know we where trying to insure printers. But evidence speaks louder than words, and thats why we need the SAR and any documentation it brings.

Thanks Again,

Marcus