Poor insurance cover leads to super-complaint

I’m sure, like me, many will be closely watching how this progresses. Only a few months ago, after my house suffered a damaged roof when it was hit by Storm Éowyn in January, I had my insurance claim turned down.

Apparently the damage came about as a result of “bad workmanship”. Strange how that just happened to occur at the same time as winds reached up to 80mph.

I appealed the decision, but the insurance firm refused to budge. From anecdotal evidence, I was far from alone in enduring this costly and stressful experience.

I therefore wasn’t surprised to read the Which? super-complaint statement focusing on home and travel insurance, because both “have some of the lowest levels of claims acceptance rates, and the impact on consumers when things go wrong can be huge”.It added that “consumers cannot afford to wait any longer for action to fix the broken home and travel insurance markets”.

Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said: “It’s time for the FCA to get a grip on the home and travel insurance markets and urgently intervene to make sure insurers up their game. This super-complaint should mark a turning point that leads to fundamental changes in how insurance companies treat their customers.”

While this development comes too late for my roof, hopefully it will improve the situation for others in the years to come – and for me, if there are more storms on their way.

There’s lots to digest in this month’s expanded 12-page Scotsman Money. On this spread, I take a deep dive into the latest Pension Attention campaign, which addresses the huge problem of people not saving enough for retirement.

And, with insight from Savills, Zoopla, and Revere, we assess the housing market across Scotland.

Elsewhere, Tom Ham of Calton reflects on US market confidence following a recent stateside trip.

Stuart Lamont of W1M is gearing up for a busy time for his firm as clients explore their options in the run up to Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Autumn Statement in November.

And, in our regular Q&A section, David Gow of Acumen Financial Planning addresses the ways a reader might receive their retirement income.

If you have a personal finance question, email scotsmanmoney@scotsman.com and sign up for our newsletter online at www.scotsman.com/newsletter