Not upheld: claim rejection / policy coverage dispute complaint against Accredited Insurance (Europe) Ltd

Decision detail

Summary

Mr K claimed on his home insurance policy for ten items stolen during a burglary in October 2024, but Accredited settled only two items. The insurer rejected eight items because they were ordinarily stored in a bank safety deposit box, not at home, despite being temporarily brought home for religious festivals. The ombudsman upheld Accredited's decision, finding that the policy's definition of 'Contents' clearly requires items to be 'kept in your home' and that items ordinarily stored away from home fall outside the scope of cover. The ombudsman noted that Mr K's failure to declare these high-value items at purchase suggested he did not expect them to be covered.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman applied the plain language of the policy terms which define contents as items 'kept in your home'. While the policy does not specify a minimum duration for items to be kept at home, the ombudsman considered the wider context and purpose of contents insurance, which generally covers possessions stored at home. The ombudsman found it unlikely that Mr K reasonably expected items ordinarily stored in a bank safety deposit box to be covered, particularly given that he did not declare them at purchase despite their high value. The ombudsman concluded that a literal interpretation of the policy in isolation could produce unfair outcomes and therefore applied a reasonable interpretation based on the policy's overall scope and context.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website