Ok, food for thought. I won't email him today - will wait to see any more advice here. I certainly don't want to go back all guns blazing, demanding the money - only to be hit with a clause/small print etc that says they CAN actually demand to see proof of ordering the new goods before releasing the funds.

Cheers, I thought it was a bit strange to be asked to show proof of purchasing new items in order to get the pay out. He is, incidentally, not asking for any specific supplier - any will do. In all other respects he has been extremely pleasant and helpful. Any idea why he would be placing this condition on us, and how should I respond to his condition ? i.e - can I quote something to him that validates my argument for payment without the need to show proof of pre-ordering the goods ? He actually was as specific as saying that it was just the proof of an order that he required - so even if we just stuck down £50 deposit to get the paperwork for him, we could then just cancel the order ! We were willing to play ball, but we are talking about £2k worth of carpets and everyone wants 20% so it would hit us for £400 off of our claim.

After a flood event we have agreed a cost for items damaged with our loss adjustor. He is, however, telling us that in order to release the funds, he requires to see proof that we have ordered replacement items. Maybe I am way wrong here, but on our only other previous claim (different loss adjustor) we agreed the cost of items damaged and received the funds to spend as we pleased. Is he entitled to demand proof of ordering of new items before paying out ? Although it is not our intention, would we not be entitled to the insured value of replacement (which he has already agreed to) - and if we want to blow it in a casino then that would be our business !!!!!! ?

I am in the same boat - although I haven't started the process yet, I know my claim will be in the region of 6-8 thousand across 3 accounts. The only thing stopping me is the uncertainty about my initial request for the info - do I request all 3 accounts together, and where do I stand on the 750 quid thing when my claim is much larger. I will continue to do the necessary trawling these threads for info, but if someone could advise on these points I would be really grateful:-)