Claims Today - July 2017

Spotlight on ‘What’s most important?’

The Property Claims team have embedded our customer focused initiative ‘What’s most important?’ to always ensure we fully understand each customer’s priorities.

The initiative is simple – we always ask our customers ‘What’s most important to you?’ at key stages in their claim.

By asking this question we are able to ensure we truly meet the individual needs of every customer, and prioritise the course of action accordingly.

We are often surprised by the answers we receive. Recently a customer experienced an extensive leak to the ground floor of their property. They chose to remain in the property, living in the first floor accommodation whilst works were completed. On our first site visit, we asked the customer what was most important to them? The answer – they wanted a vacuum cleaner and a Xbox as soon as possible. They were very concerned at keeping the upstairs clean and tidy, and the 3 children occupied!

Case Studies

Commercial

The Claim

Our insured’s wife was travelling around a bend on her bicycle when she skidded on loose gravel and fell. The handle bars and leather saddle were badly damaged, in addition to the specialist cycling helmet and glasses. Sadly our insured’s wife had also been badly bruised as a result of the accident and was in a lot of pain.

What we did

We quickly agreed to cash settle with the client to cover the costs for the bike parts and clothing, allowing the insured’s wife to replace those items and continue cycling when she felt well enough to do so. Whilst we couldn’t fix her bruises, we also sent her a Fortnum and Mason hamper to enjoy whilst she was off the road.

The Claim

Our insured, a Masonic Lodge, unfortunately had a ceremonial sword stolen from a car in March 2016. It was of great value to the Masons as it had been part of their ceremonial equipment since 1886 and was literally irreplaceable. The Lodge network had been keeping a close eye on auctions for the sword, as it has a distinctive inscription. Early this year, the insured contacted our Recovery Team to advise that the sword had emerged for sale at an upcoming auction.

What we did

We immediately appointed an expert company to support the handling of the claim. They liaised with the insured, the Metropolitan police and the auction house to ensure that the sale was stopped. We negotiated the return of the item with the dealer and that sword was returned to the Masons. They were delighted with its return and Hiscox were reimbursed for the amount originally paid for the loss.

Professional Indemnity

The Claim

Our insured, a website designer, was sued by a customer who was unhappy with a project completed by the insured.

What we did

We swiftly confirmed cover and instructed our panel solicitors to defend the insured. We were able to negotiate a settlement of the legal proceedings, with the insured’s customer agreeing to drop the lawsuit and accepting terms of confidentiality around the settlement.

What the broker said

“Great to hear that matters are settled. Many thanks for your help, greatly appreciated.”

Private Client

The Claim

Our insured had the unfortunate experience of discovering that a diamond from one of her rings had become detached from the ring itself. She immediately retraced her steps but sadly was unable to locate the diamond. The ring had also been badly damaged and had clearly been knocked against something without the insured’s knowledge.

What we did

We immediately put the insured in touch with our jewellery expert, Mappin and Webb. They completed a full assessment of the ring and found that the damage was in fact so severe that the best option was to remake the ring entirely. We called our insured to explain the situation. The customer was happy to accept the offer to completely remake the ring for them.

What the customer said

“A lost piece of jewellery that was replaced without quibble, with no forms and only one short call which you answered directly – the rest was left to my named jeweller. Thank you for living up to your brand promise.”