Am I too honest?
Discussion
After a recent burglary I had a visit form the insurance investigator concerning my contents policy.
Despite being badly out of pocket overall I could not bring myself to 'add a few things' to the list of losses.
The investigator didnt even insist on any receipts to sign off the claim.
Bearing in mind a different insurer wont pay up for my motorbike stolen in the incident who here would have padded out the claim a little?
Despite being badly out of pocket overall I could not bring myself to 'add a few things' to the list of losses.
The investigator didnt even insist on any receipts to sign off the claim.
Bearing in mind a different insurer wont pay up for my motorbike stolen in the incident who here would have padded out the claim a little?
i wouldnt even be able to pad my claim out a bit cos i dont have any contents insurance. i got my quote for it a few weeks ago and it would have been more to cover the contents than the building alone 
(even tho i only have a few crappy pcs and, 1 crappy tele and a mediocre hifi). apparently bristol is almost as bad as london for contents!
chris
(even tho i only have a few crappy pcs and, 1 crappy tele and a mediocre hifi). apparently bristol is almost as bad as london for contents! chris
gbbird said:
I reckon a bit of 'poetic licence' on such claims is pretty fair, considering the amount we have to pay for insurance in the first place, regardless of whether we actually use it or not!
On the whole I agree but I have developed a really perverse kind of loyalty towards Direct Line largely because they pay claims without a quibble (as opposed to some of the other
s out there) and they have done extremely badly out of me over the past year.I'm afraid I too suffer from an excess of honesty Blindswellrat - it's been a curse all my life.
It has become very obvious though that society and the state in general no longer rewards honesty at all, and in fact discourages it.
So maybe I need to have a rethink. Perhaps I really am the mug after all.
It has become very obvious though that society and the state in general no longer rewards honesty at all, and in fact discourages it.
So maybe I need to have a rethink. Perhaps I really am the mug after all.
gbbird said:
I reckon a bit of 'poetic licence' on such claims is pretty fair, considering the amount we have to pay for insurance in the first place, regardless of whether we actually use it or not!
Why do you think premiums are so high to begin with? At least in part because people adopt the same attitude as you and inflate their claims, leading the insurance companies to have to pay out more!
The argument is circular.
>> Edited by Lurking Lawyer on Wednesday 23 November 13:44
I'm quite honest with this sort of thing.
My car was stolen in the summer. The insurance co. wanted to know what was in the car etc. I let them know about all my cd's, shades, CD player and car cover in the boot. The car was recovered soon after, miraculously I thought with all of this stuff still present so I let them know and they removed them from the claim.
My car was stolen in the summer. The insurance co. wanted to know what was in the car etc. I let them know about all my cd's, shades, CD player and car cover in the boot. The car was recovered soon after, miraculously I thought with all of this stuff still present so I let them know and they removed them from the claim.
silversun said:
No, more people should be honest.
I know a couple who have inflated a home insurance claim 3 separate times by thousands of pounds and it just increases premiums for everyone else. Totally wrong, IMO.
Fortunately false claims will be harder to achieve in the future .... some Insurance co's are installing "lie detection" software at their call centres - basically detecting "stressed" and other characteristics in the callers voice - which are strong indicators of telling porkies.
I have exactly the same frustrations. There doesn't actually seem to be a downside to being crooked nowadays and I don't believe in God so why can I not just shake off thes No I can't pad out insurance claims either, have only claimed twice on the house insurance, and I was well impressed with how well they handled the claims.
But people are always saying 'go on they won't know'. But I would and I would feel guilty. I have a real problem with telling bare faced lies.
But people are always saying 'go on they won't know'. But I would and I would feel guilty. I have a real problem with telling bare faced lies.
alfaman said:
Fortunately false claims will be harder to achieve in the future .... some Insurance co's are installing "lie detection" software at their call centres - basically detecting "stressed" and other characteristics in the callers voice - which are strong indicators of telling porkies.
I don't like the idea of that, I mean if you have just come home to find your front door smashed in and all your valued/valuable possesions stolen, then surely you are going to sound stressed/upset/angry on the phone?
speedchick said:Not to mention having navigated 15 levels of a phone menu, holding for 30 minutes and trying to explain your claim to an Indian call centre.
Fortunately false claims will be harder to achieve in the future .... some Insurance co's are installing "lie detection" software at their call centres - basically detecting "stressed" and other characteristics in the callers voice - which are strong indicators of telling porkies.
I don't like the idea of that, I mean if you have just come home to find your front door smashed in and all your valued/valuable possesions stolen, then surely you are going to sound stressed/upset/angry on the phone?
Problem with lies is, they can so easily catch you up, or you get caught out, and for what really, a few hundred quid, even a few thousand, not worth it if you get caught out and done for insurance fraud...
At least if you are honest it's good karma, and you'll never get caught out.
I know a few people who had "water leaks" all over their hifi and carpet, so they got new tv and hifi and new carpet.... oh thats such bad luck That was 10 years ago and even then I just thought WTF, you could easily afford what you've just claimed for...
Honesty is the best policy. And with insurers it's YOU who pays anyway, so your only ripping yourself and others off, not the insurer!
Dave
At least if you are honest it's good karma, and you'll never get caught out.
I know a few people who had "water leaks" all over their hifi and carpet, so they got new tv and hifi and new carpet.... oh thats such bad luck
That was 10 years ago and even then I just thought WTF, you could easily afford what you've just claimed for... Honesty is the best policy. And with insurers it's YOU who pays anyway, so your only ripping yourself and others off, not the insurer!
Dave
There is perhaps an addendum to the "honesty is best" policy, in that sometimes what is right isnt neccesarily what's 100% honest.
Case in point, an aquaintance of mine was told that several items were, for whatever reason, not covered on his policy after a burglary.
His CD and DvD collection multiplied slightly to cover the approximate value of what was gone.
End result - He paid for his insurance and got back what was lost. Or that he was a thieving git and should have accepted that they welched on their agreement to cover his possesions over smallprint.
Case in point, an aquaintance of mine was told that several items were, for whatever reason, not covered on his policy after a burglary.
His CD and DvD collection multiplied slightly to cover the approximate value of what was gone.
End result - He paid for his insurance and got back what was lost. Or that he was a thieving git and should have accepted that they welched on their agreement to cover his possesions over smallprint.
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