Ј1.99 Plumming and Drainage Insurance Cover

A question about : Ј1.99 Plumming and Drainage Insurance Cover

I have just been sent a letter offering Plumming & Drainage cover for just Ј1.99 per month for the first year. Annual charge is Ј23.88 so there is not extra interest charge for paying monthly. Cover is limited to Ј4000.00 for blocked or cloopsed drains outside your home ( 2 claims per year of Ј2000 ) and up to Ј2000 for plumming or drainage emergencies inside your home ( 2 claims per year of Ј1000 )
The letter is from Northumbrian Water introducing HOMESERVE GB LTD. There is a freephone number to HOMESERVE 0800 073 2169 quoting reference number NOSP61D for this special offer.

Normal price is Ј64.99 per year so it would revert back to that upon renewal.

Just thought I would pass the information onto anybody who might interested.

OOPS A DAISY

Best answers:

• OOPS - sorry should read my own posts before I press submit
  cloopsed should read collapsed
• Got the same letter myself from Angian Water
• Yes I did take this up (in Wessex Water area) a couple of years ago. After the first year the price rocketed, but I was offered a cheaper policy if I was prepared to pay the first Ј50 of any claim. I have decided not to renew it again, primarily because any problems that we have encountered have not actually been on our property but in the road!
  Only point I would make is that the insurance company is actually nothing to do with the water company, even though the documents they sent me had Wessex Water printed on them, giving the impression that they were affiliated. When I mentioned this to Wessex Water they said it was nothing to do with them and their name shouldn't be used on the stationery!
  This company also do insurance against electrical problems, gas problems etc, so you'll probably get hit with those leaflets soon!
• I got the same letter but higher priced from scottish water.
  My OH seems keen because he's getting more paranoid as he ages.
  I am more cynical.
  All I could find on the net about them was the listen again show of you and yours on:
  https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyo...20050201.shtml
  They seem to imply that it is unecessary to cover the pipes into your home.
  OH likes the cover for inside plumbing though. are there better options?
  I am confused as ever. Has anyone actually ever made a claim with this company?
• Be worth checking if yo are already adequately covered on your house (buildings) Insurance.
• Yes, I have made two claims over the years that I have had this insurance. On both occasions they did get a plumber out the same day to try and solve the problem, but on once he arrived at about 10.00pm and only had rods when he needed a jetting machine, so they had to send somebody else next day. Presumably they have paid the bills because I haven't heard anything to the contrary.
• The affiliation with the Water Companies can be a positive thing. If there is a problem in dealing with Homeserve, there is always a fall back position in that one can escalate to the water company and get them to approach Homeserve on your behalf.
• I seem to think that Homeserve was/is owned by a water company (Severn Trent).
  My water company also sent this & I noticed straight away it does not cover water storage tanks (expensive). My own water company will repair a leaking service (supply) pipe free (just the once though). My House Insurance will also cover the supply pipe. I have lived in my present house for over 30 years, never had a blocked sewer (do have some drain rods though). Never had a damaged supply pipe, I can mend a burst pipe if I have one (push on fittings are great). I have had to replace two tanks which would not have been covered. In that time I have saved quite a bit of money by not insuring. Year 1 it's cheap peace of mind, year 2 really think about it.
• Homeserve isn't owned by Severn Trent. They were associated with South Staffordshire Water (when Homeserve were called Home Service) till about 18months ago but had a demerger.
• I recently had the misfortune to have a supply pipe leak and you can forget the free repair unless they "think" they can do it in under 3 hours look at the small print. This was with Thames water.
  Fortunatly I had the homeserve policy and they did it in under 2hours!!! wrote to Thames about it but gave up with them a load of ******. That is the good story about Homeserve the bad one is on the plumbimng and drainage cover you are not covered unless it is an emergency ie you have no water at all!! I had a blockage from the supply pipe repair and they said it was not an emergency (Ihad some water pressure) so I was not covered. I have since cancelled the policy.
• funny thing is Homeserve cover the Thames Water repairs as far as i know.
• Correct but it is a different sub-contractor! The ones that work on the free repairs are expected to do 3 a day so if they start and think it is going to take them longer than 3 hours they stop and point out the clause in the contract and then offer to do a discounted repair (Ј250 at a later date.). To quote the contractor "Thames have got you all ways" we are just doing what we are told.
  I was fortunate that i had taken out the insurance a few months earlier The Homeserve contractor work through Homeserve and have nothing directly to do with Thames. There is obviously a deal between homeserve and all the Water companies and Thames get some unregulated extra revenue in allowing them access to its customer database. Homeserve is a independant company quoted on the stock exchange.
• It could be any contractor, Homeserve have a massive network of contractors in different areas. If it's a policy that Homeserve deal with then it'll be any of their contractors who are available, a lot of the contractors are independant plumbers etc who work with Homeserve.
  Homeserve also sell the policies and deal with all the admin queries and complaints etc for the water companies (etc) they deal with. Not just a case of access to the customer database, it saves the water companies the hassle of setting up their own call centres and contractor network.
• I got a letter today from Homeserve/Northumbrian Water addressed as 'The Homeowner' :rolleyes: offering this cover for Ј1.99 a month. Might be worth it at that price but I won't be renewing it at Ј69.99 a year seen as I only spent Ј30 last year for a plumbing repair.
• Can anyone suggest a reasonably priced alternative to homeserve. I am currently with them but find their service to be atrocious and looking to switch.
  Currently paying Ј6.99 a month, but are using them on average twice a year due to drainage issues.
• I took this out, made a claim for a blocked drain, no problem there. A few months later we had a leak in a pipe under the shower and water was pouring through into my kitchen when I got in. Called them out, they got someone that night, about 9.00pm when he arrived. He didn't have what he needed so disappeared of for around an hour. He eventually came back, sorted the leak, turned the water back on and we still had a leak. Turns out there was another tiny hole in the pipe, which was in an awkward place.
  He ripped my floorboard up, literally just breaking it off, goodness only knows how he did it or what he used to do it with, and eventually managed to fix the leak. When it came to signing the paperwork he then told me that because there were two holes in the pipe and he'd actually finished the job on the first one before he discovered the second, that would count as my two inside visits. As it was nearly midnight, I couldn't be bothered to argue, plus the policy was due to expire the following month, I just signed his paper work.
• I recently ditched Homeserve for Swinton after reading referral on this site. My experience with Homeserve was that they procrastinated over whether a claim was an actual emergency or not and on one occassion refused to respond on that basis. Therefore swapped to Swinton. Homeserve then followed up with the 1.99 offer - which I haven't taken.
• I have many policies with homeserve including :
  plumbing & drainage
  water supply pipe
  electrical emergency breakdown
  home accident plan
  pest policy
  I have claimed on one - I was told they would come out within 2 hours if an uncontrollable emergency - they kept to their word.
  For approx Ј10 per month I get piece of mind on all of the above.
  Homeserve work in partnership with most Water Companies - they were affiliated with South Staffs water when they were known as Home Service but have changed about 2 years ago to Homeserve - they are based in Walsall in the west midlands and employ contractors throughout the UK.
  I am very happy with them - the website is - www.homeserve.com