My 104-year-old mother has home insurance with Swinton, which includes emergencies in the home that cause a risk to health. Being almost blind, she relies on a macerator lavatory in her bedroom at night, and this is faulty. But Swinton insists it is not covered, despite having repaired it before. The cost of a plumber is £1,395, which she can ill afford.
CA, Weybridge, Surrey
This is covered by her policy, but Swinton only acknowledged it after my intervention. How many customers are stalled by their insurers unless the media spotlight swings their way? In the meantime, your disabled mother has had to make a hazardous trip to her bathroom at night. Swinton says: “Following a further investigation, we accepted, and fast-tracked, the claim. We have apologised for any inconvenience and, as a goodwill gesture, covered the whole cost of the claim at £1,600, where only £500 would have been covered by the policy.”
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