Hey
I was just wondering what happens if you need to claim on contents insurance . Do they send the money or do they buy which ever items need replacing ?
I’m asking because I used to have a financial advocate and concerned the insurers may still have their bank details on the system as opposed to mine ?
My insurers are closed at the moment so can’t ask them
I’ve got all the paperwork here regarding my claim but it doesn’t specify what I’m looking for
But presumably they’re contactable on Monday?
I hope so.
I just get anxious waiting and wanted to see what the case is for you guys
It ultimately depends on your policy wording. Have a read of your documents, it will tell you in those.
Some will fix the item for you. Some will give you the money to get the item repaired yourself. Some will reimburse you for a repair. Some will replace your item. Replacements will either be new or refurbished, or a product of a similar value. If a suitable replacement can’t be sourced, they will give you the value in money. New for old policies will pay the price you paid for the item, other policies will pay less as the value of items degrade over time. All of these can vary by item too, which your policy documents will clarify. You can either find those in the welcome pack you may have received via email or post when you took out your policy, or via your online account if your insurer has an online accounts service.
No one can really answer your question to any degree of satisfaction for you, as it’s very unlikely any of us will have exactly the same policy, with the exact same processes, for the exact same items as you do.
If you could provide the name of your insurer, and the item in question, I can have a look to see what the usual process is for you. But again, there’s no guarantee it would apply for your policy.
Don’t need to make a claim and hopefully wont need to either . Jus wanted to know what the process is. I’ll call up Monday then 
@N26throwaway It provides no info on what happens in the event of a claim
Ok guys thanks I’ll call Monday and find out
I can remember now When I renewed it last year they didn’t ask for any details just a card number for the premium so I’m guessing they don’t store any bank details
Wait, so there is no need to claim and no issue, it’s just a bored Saturday afternoon question?
Insurers won’t store your bank details just in case they need to pay out. They will ask for them when (if) the time comes. And even then it won’t be instant but will follow a rather lengthy process
MSE go check it out
Thanks for the info
Yeah the issue was I thought they’d still have my advocates bank details on system . After doing some research I found they probably don’t store any details as you said. I’ll double check tomorrow with them
As an aside on insurance, and maybe not the best thread to bring it up in… But if you don’t already it’s worth keeping specific notes / photos / lists of the items that are valuable and may need replacing under the policy.
It’s the difference between, say, “Kettle”, and getting a £5 replacement Basics one, vs “[Brand] Adjustable temperature wireless kettle, with keep warm feature, in Onyx Black”.
Something I’ve always wondered, particularly in relation to contents, is how do they verify and enforce that the total value of your contents is equal to or less than the amount you’re covered for?
I don’t think any insurer I’ve used has ever asked or done any checking, although I’ve never knowingly underinsured my contents either. When I spilled water on my MacBook several years ago (the only time I’ve ever claimed on insurance) direct line just replaced it with the same model, but a more up to date version. To my knowledge, they never did any checks to make sure I wasn’t underinsuring my contents.
Like most insurance, it’s a risk based on many things but the details aren’t worth the cost of capturing them. So they set the premiums accordingly. Remember - most folk don’t claim.
Some insurers will ask for details of items above a certain value, of course.
Ok called them up and the only details they have on their system is my debit card I used to pay the premium with
In the case of a claim I call them up and they take it from there
The company I have my insurance with are a “broker” for aviva. Does this mean they act on behalf of aviva just like an estate agents represent the landlord ?