search  current discussion  categories  business - liability & insurance 

rude replies 2 (was re: insurance)

updated tue 2 sep 03

 

Janet Kaiser on tue 2 sep 03


Good gracious! Who stole someone's sense of humour and common
sense, replacing both with advanced self-righteousness? Tut, tut,
tut...

Reading any official or legal documentation is never "fun", but
then again it is preferable to sticking one's head in the sand
and thinking that everything will be fine in the event of an
emergency or disaster. Everyone has a horror story of how they
"thought" they were covered for this, that or the other, but the
insurance company has found reason or reasons for not paying
claims in the small print.

The worst I heard about recently was two people who were still
homeless after many months of legal wrangle between insurance
companies. They were at the end of a power line when a huge power
surge hit town during all that strange "rolling blackout"
situation in California just before Enron collapsed. All the
neighbours "only" suffered burned out electric appliances and
small fires which were luckily contained, but their whole house
with all their treasures of a lifetime disappeared in a fireball
as witnesses were able to describe to investigators. They were
extremely lucky they were not at home at the time, otherwise they
would have been fried alive along with their pets. No wonder the
poor woman suffered a stroke a couple of weeks later.

Just for the record, there is a HUGE difference between simple
over-firing of a kiln and an electrical failure of any magnitude
which leads to anything from a burned out fuse, to a shortage, to
a fire, to an explosion. Does not matter who or what is to
"blame", the more precision written into an insurance agreement,
the less likely one can think everything is OK only to be told
quite the contrary.

And imagine various scenarios which are apparently covered, but
think them through whilst scrutinising the policy AND paying
particular attention to the SMALL PRINT in the EXCLUSION CLAUSES
before you decide what you still "think". It is still quite
possible you "think wrong" especially if the jargon does your
head in from the first sentence...

Main policy: washing machine is listed as one of the named
appliances covered for resulting damage to property, furniture
and fittings and third party claims in the event of malfunction
or failure.

Small print: This policy does not cover any damage to the
property, furniture and fittings of the policy holder or any
third party caused by household appliances in the absence of the
policy holder or his/her agents. Another clause states that the
policy holder is responsible for containing and minimising damage
whatever the cause.

You presume from having named the washing machine, that when it
flooded the utility room and then the apartment below,
hospitalising the tenant when the ceiling fell in on top of them,
that you would be covered for all the damage? Wrong. You were
upstairs having a nap and were not present when the machine
malfunctioned. You also did not contain or minimise damage
caused. Payment refused on two counts.

"Remember what Thought did?
No?
He followed a muck cart and thought it was a wedding."

Something I heard often as a child... Each time I had to explain
doing something really silly...

Sincerely

Janet Kaiser -- who sadly waved Rikki off this morning... But we
had a wonderful time... Short but sweet.


*** IN REPLY TO THE FOLLOWING MAIL:

>>Just because your insurance agent knows that
>>you have one, two, four, a dozen kilns in your
>>house, under your bed, whatever does NOT
>>mean that you are covered if or when they
>>cause damage! Even if they have bats in their eyes.
>>READ YOUR POLICY!!! if it does not specifically
>>STATE IN WRITING that you are covered from
>>that type of damage, then most likely YOU ARE NOT.
>>It might be listed in the exclusions instead.
>
>
>My, My... what is your reason for being so bloody UPTIGHT!!!!
Mr. Know
>All!!! Cheeze...JUST for your information, I don't keep my
kilns under
>the bed, do YOU?? the next time I want some light reading with
my glass
>of ice tea, I'll just go dig out my Ins. Policy for a good read
>through......Doesn't that sound like great fun??????
>
>Of course, the alternative would be to just CALL THE AGENT AND
ASK!!!!!!
>where it's stated, however, that's probably far too simple a
solution for
>any man who likes to do everything the hard way. I've been
running kilns
>since 1969, & even seriously over firing one, immediately after
being
>worked on by an obviously inferior Kiln Repairman... did not
lead to FIRE..
*** THE MAIL FROM Miriam ENDS HERE ***


***********************************************************
The top posted mail was sent by Janet Kaiser
The Chapel of Art : Capel Celfyddyd
8 Marine Crescent : Criccieth : Wales : UK
Centre of Excellence for The Arts
Home of The International Potters' Path
Tel: ++44 (01766) 523570 http://www.the-coa.org.uk
Open: 13.00 to 17.00hrs : Tuesday to Saturday
************** AVG Virus Protected ********************