Take a look at the above logo. You may wish to avoid it! Read on.
Let's get real about this situation following the 2011 Brisbane River Flood.
Real Insurance - a really little insurance company in the whole scheme of things - has suffered a massive legal loss at the hands of the Financial Ombudsman Service.
The Courier-Mail reports:
"This means
there are only a few months left for most potential claimants, says Scott
McDougall, director of Caxton Legal Centre, Queensland's oldest community law
service.
Caxton and
Legal Aid Queensland, which offers a similar service, both say that there are
many flood victims who should have challenged their insurers but have been too
traumatised to do so.
"When your
house has been flooded people have so many other stresses and concerns," Mr
McDougall said.
The legal
centre has so far helped more than 200 flood victims and secured payouts
totalling $5 million for about 120 of those.
Mr McDougall said RACQ customers who were flooded before 4am on January 12, 2011, and were not paid out should challenge the decision. He also said flood victims insured with Real Insurance should query the company's policy of a maximum $15,000 payout. The ombudsman had found Real had not properly informed customers of this policy, he said." - 7 January 2013
Mr McDougall said RACQ customers who were flooded before 4am on January 12, 2011, and were not paid out should challenge the decision. He also said flood victims insured with Real Insurance should query the company's policy of a maximum $15,000 payout. The ombudsman had found Real had not properly informed customers of this policy, he said." - 7 January 2013
Real Insurance should be forced to write to all policy holders advising that flood victims may indeed have a claim because of Real's failure to properly disclose the limit of the company's liability. Real Insurance would have had access to the best legal brains in the country to advise them what they were required to do to make their supposed $15,000 flood payout limit enforceable.
Failure by Real Insurance to now do the right thing by their policyholders would be a real tragedy for flood victims as well as a tragedy for Real Insurance with their reputation sullied forever if they don't contact all of their claimants fully explaining the nature and effect of the decision by the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Failure by Real Insurance to now do the right thing by their policyholders would be a real tragedy for flood victims as well as a tragedy for Real Insurance with their reputation sullied forever if they don't contact all of their claimants fully explaining the nature and effect of the decision by the Financial Ombudsman Service.
7.1.13
