Our garden gazebo was wrecked in storm Eowyn – it’s not listed on our household insurance. Is there any way to claim for it?
E. L., via email.
Dean Dunham replies: Whether or not you can claim for the gazebo depends on what is stated in your policy.
Most standard home insurance includes some cover for garden items, but the specifics vary.
Your home insurance policy will typically be split into ‘buildings’ and ‘contents’ insurance.
With most providers, buildings cover includes damage to garden walls, gates and fences, drives and footpaths, domestic outbuildings such as a shed, and garages, swimming pools and tennis courts, septic tanks and central heating oil, or gas, tanks.
A reader’s insurance company is refusing to pay out after their garden gazebo was wrecked in storm Eowyn (file picture)
These are all seen to be part of the structure of your property and therefore covered under your buildings insurance.
You’ll usually be insured for loss or damage as a result of fire, water or oil leaks, theft, storm or flood (apart from loss or damage to gates or fences caused by storm or flood), subsidence, impact as well as vandalism.
With contents insurance, most providers will cover you for items in your garden, including lawnmowers, bicycles, gardening tools including power tools, children’s outdoor toys, garden furniture, barbecues and patio heaters.
Because the gazebo is not specifically listed, it does not necessarily mean it is not covered under your policy and depends on how the insurance policy terms are worded.
You should ask your provider if you will be covered and if it says no ask why and what part of its policy terms tit relies upon in this regard.
If you do not accept the firm’s response, you could lodge a claim with the Financial Ombudsman Service (financial-ombudsman.org.uk).
Pot luck with saucepan return
I bought a set of saucepans online and one is damaged. I want to keep two and send the broken one back but the company says I have to return all three. What are my rights?
J. N., via email.
Dean Dunham replies: When goods turn out to be faulty the Consumer Rights Act provides the customer with a remedy. In this respect your basic right is under section 23, which states that you are entitled to a free repair or replacement.
There are a few points to note with this. Firstly, if it’s impossible or financially disproportionate for the retailer to provide a repair or replacement, it does not have to do so. It can instead simply provide you with a refund or offer a price reduction.
Secondly, where the retailer does agree to provide a repair or replacement, it must do this within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience to the consumer. It must also bear any necessary costs incurred in doing so, including in particular the cost of any labour, materials or postage.
However, there is another part of the Consumer Rights Act that further complicates matters when buying goods that make up a set.
Section 21 states that if the goods form a ‘commercial unit’ which basically means the items are part of a set, the consumer cannot reject some of those goods without also rejecting the rest.
So with the saucepans, if they truly were part of a set – meaning the retailer only sells them together and not individually or they were packaged in one branded box, unfortunately for you, the retailer in your case will be entitled to stipulate that you must return all three saucepans.
If this is the case, your rights will be to receive a full refund for the set, to have the set replaced ‘like for like’ or you could ask for a price reduction to take account of the damaged saucepan if it cannot provide a replacement.
