Auto and Car Insurance

Other than building insurance and car insurance is it worth having any other insurance?

in this throw away culture we live in. I mean the access you have to pay is almost as much as going out and buying new? My husband ACCIDENTLY dropped our expensive TV and we have been only offered £279 pounds from Direct line insurance for a TV worth in access of £700 and that is after we fork out £150.00 access on the policy. Oh and I was made to feel like a criminal when I phoned up to make the claim. New laws about insurance fraud has made it necessary to leave no stone unturned. This is because of people making dishonest claims. The honest have to suffrer once again. Yes rip off Britain! What do you think have you had a similiar experience. Please tell.

Public Comments

1. home insurance is good
2. Insuring your television is probably expensive. Even if the television was totally destroyed, you could probably afford another without great financial difficulty. Liability insurance is important. You can be sued and lose your life's savings. Health insurance is important for those of us living in countries where the government doesn't provide it. Again, you can lose your life's savings paying hospital bills.
3. Insurance isn't about "small" claims. It's not about filing for every carelessly dropped television, or vcr that a kid stuffed a sandwich into. It's about huge, catastrophic, potentially financially devestating claims - like accidentally killing a bus of kids (want an Umbrella Liability policy?), or for the rest of the world without socialized medicine, $150,000 of cancer treatment bills, or a father that drops dead of a heart attack leaving mom with 4 kids under 6 and no way to pay the mortgage or keep the lights on. In your case, what if the whole place burned down, and you lost EVERYTHING? THAT'S what insurance is about - when you lose everything. THAT'S why you have a DEDUCTIBLE that gets applied to each and every claim - to discourage you from putting in small claims, and encourage you to be responsible for yourself.
4. I had may bag stolen from my chalet on holiday which contained mine and my daughters personal bits, as 2 persons were therefore claiming under the travel insureance the insurer applied the excess twice, the total we lost came to over £ 875.00 but after deducting the excess's and wear and tear and then offering only a percentage of the claim as I didnt have purchase receipts the claim was settled at £129.00 of which my daughter recieved nothing as her goods came within the excess of £150 each - the police were able to arrest the teenagers later on that day but all items had been been moved on from the teenagers home. as the teenagers were under 16 no chance of any contribution from them . the police had a string of offences commited by the 3 teenagers but didnt procced with the procecution - what a sad society overal .the policy excess is there to stop all the small claims !!!- insurance is primarily there for the castrophic loss like a fire,theft, burst pipe, flood, storm etc but with the customer wanting more for less premium and the insurer becoming greedy for more of the customers they have added cover for the sort of loss you described. It is sad that we as a society expect to be able to claim back for small losses which in effect wipe out the premium paid to insurers for a couple of years and then wonder why the policy excess and premiums start increasing. I always put accidents like a dropped TV , broken sink, glass claim etc down as a hazard of owning a home. and hope I can retain my no claims discount that way on the household policy and to keep the premium down. We must remember insurers are in it to make a profit but when dealing with the public they can always try and be sympathetic and polite, that costs nothing - Try using an insurance broker in the future. Life insurance is a good idea but then so is medical insurance but how deep are our pockets? take a deep breath and put it down to experiance I am an Insurance underwriter by profession
5. there are some good companies out there but i think insurance companies have never had it so good it seems if you claim for an amount you paid your premium for don't be surprised if you end up with half the amount//rip off is right
6. aggi53, Great answer (can't rate yet). Another type of insurance to consider is valuable. In America the standard homeowner's policy has a limit on jewelry, guns, antiques, etc. (usually around $2500.00). If you have any of these type items, you may want to look at scheduling these items. When my brother's guns were stolen, $15,000 worth, all he got was $2500.00. These types of policies are usually a bit expensive, but worth it in the long run.
7. If you don't like dealing with an insurer direct why not go through an insurance broker. They will assess your requirements and make a recommendation of what policy best meets them. They will also advise you on policy cover and terms so you don't have silly excesses on your policy (now you know why your premium was so cheap!). They will also help you if you have to make a claim and provide a local friendly service. By the way Direct Line seem to be trying it on. Is the cover under their policy indemnity or new for old? If the latter then you should be offered the value of a replacement TV or an actual replacement. (les excess) Go back to them and if not happy ask them for their complaints procedure. You will if not satisfied say you'll take them to the FOS - and I am sure they will settle before iit goes that far. With regards to 'is it worth buying any other insurance?' The following are 'good' ideas. Life insurance if you have any dependents. Mortgage protection insurance if you have a mortgage (don't buy your lender's though). This product has had a bad press through mis-selling but it is a vital product as you don't want to lose your house if you lose your source of income. Travel insurance if going on holiday - a no-brainer. Again don't buy from a travel agent and if you have any medical conditions or intend to do any hazardous activities see your broker. Income protection - providing long term benefits if you fall seriously ill. If you are self employed you need personal accident and sickness insurance as well. Other products of course depend on whether you need them - pet insurance - to cover vet's bills, caravan insurance, small boat insurance are useful as appropriate. Products you probably don't need: extended warranty insurance on electrical goods (bought from your electrical store), mobile phone insurance.
8. it would be interesting to know why you chose to insure with direct line. did you select them because they understood your needs, and offered a policy which met your requirements having taken the time to explain how the policy would meet any potential claims? or do they have a musical telephone and offer cheap quotes? insurance is a comlex legal contract. even the simple ones like motor, travel and home. take (independent) advice. buy cheap - pay twice.