Dear whizzkid001, another option to consider is a holiday or similar short term self catering let. It is the most difficult time of year for this but may work out cheaper for the insurer and more convenient for you - it can get pretty depressing/tedious living in a hotel for any length of time. There is a huge amount of personal preference here and negotiation is the key. It will also depend on how serious/time consuming the repairs are. I would say it is almost never that building works are completed to time! regards, Jet

Dear afcwben, this is the sort of behaviour which reinforces all the stereotypical impression we as consumers have of the insurance industry. Had you thought (tongue in cheek) to ask for a 5 year old floor to be installed? Then you'd be in the same position as you were before the event and your insurer would not be giving you betterment. This is obviously a preposterous state of affairs. I wish I had taken a note of the source but I read (yes, on t'initernet) that there was case law on this issue - where the only way to get the insured back to the condition they were in before the event would be to involve a degree of betterment. The example was a car accident where damaged but part worn tyres were replaced by new. IIRC the ruling was that where the only way of returning the insured to the pre-event condition involved betterment the insurer was liable for the whole cost. Of course you wouldn't be replacing your floor after only five years would you? Wishing you huge moral support and regards, Jet

Dear LemonTwist, sorry I haven't thanked you earlier, a difficult and stressful time it is (oops /Yoda mode off). Anyway, after 5 weeks in holiday homes (2 in a poor one, this 3 rather nice although a rotten commute) we've got a more similar home to go to no more than 5 minutes away. It is somewhere in the middle of the price range we expected. We've still got to go through 2 partial moves (there and back when it's all over), they wouldn't furnish it, sods. We still don't know where the spill is coming from but suspicions are now on a tank some 4 doors down which was damaged by a pickaxe (!) some 9 months ago, regards, Jet

Dear All, we got home from a weeks break to find a chemical odour throughout the house which we pretty soon found to be caused by a layer of, we think, heating oil on some ground water in our cellar. We called the insurers straight away and the handling of the contamination issue is ongoing and has so far been fair. However we are both feeling the effects of the fumes - catarrh, sore throat etc and need to move out. The insurer has OK'd this in principle (al?) and we thought we had found a place which fell through. This was unfortunate as its price was reasonable (compared to others), its situation ideal and its size/decor was similar/good quality. We've now looked at other places in a similar price range and they have been universally horrid/too small/wrong location etc Places which are suitable in general seem much more expensive but the insurance company is quibbling about the cost as the first place was (in our opinion uniquely) so much cheaper. Can we insist that the insurer pays the going rate for a similar property to ours- size/location/facilities/decor? The only "small print" in the policy, which is a bit of an unkind phrase as it is quite clear, is £25000 maximum for the accommodation, we assume per claim. Further would these costs cover all additional expenses for a rented place e.g.heat/power/phones/water&sewarage rates/council tax and anything else? regards & TIA colinsmithathome

Dear NailPost, I've tried another company and it is the same although the insurance is "included in the booking fee". It seems this is endemic to the holiday lettings industry these days. For me it is a sellers market as I have very specific wishes when it comes to holiday cottages. Usually I go for privately advertised places but I can't find one where I'm going this year, regards, jet

Dear ScarletPimpernel, that is what I thought - they cannot dictate which insurer. I have received other advice however that this legislation whatever it may be applies only to foreign destinations. The lakes ain't foreign! regards, jet noise

Dear ScarletPimpernel, thanks for responding. This is in full from the Ts & Cs: It is not the amount or quality of cover I am querying although I agree it is very expensive and has more exclusions than an exclusive thing. Neither is it the requirement that having cancellation insurance is compulsory, although given the choice I would accept the risk as I usually do. My objection is that the compulsory purchase of said insurance is from the holiday cottage rental company itself. I believe this to be anti-competitive and therefore possibly illegal. regards, jet noise chainsaw accidents are rarely trivial:D

Dear All, may I respectfully request your assistance on this my first issue, please? I'm about to book a UK holiday cottage and I am informed that I must pay £22 per week per property compulsory cancellation insurance. This is repeated in the Ts & Cs. This is compulsory and costs £22 p.w. p.p. to be paid at time of booking. Is this legal? Or am I misassociating some other insurance for which competition is a requirement e.g. house insurance. regards, jet noise chainsaw accidents are rarely trivial:D

Dear All, all together: "hello and welcome to me". I hope you holiday ts & cs experts will be able to answer my query in the, er, holiday companies forum, TIA, jet_noise chainsaw accidents are rarely trivial:D