ASK TONY: My insurer rejected a claim because I am not living with my partner who is caring for her elderly parents

Published: 18:20 EST, 29 September 2015 | Updated: 06:03 EST, 30 September 2015

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My partner and I were due to go on holiday to Madeira in May.

In late April, my partner was abroad with her elderly parents, aged 91 and 85, for whom she is the primary carer.

Her father hired a mobility scooter which was faulty and sent him flying down a steep hill, where it turned over. He suffered multiple injuries.

Our holiday had to be cancelled as my partner had to care for her mother, who has Alzheimer’s.

Her insurance company paid for her share of the holiday, but Nationwide has rejected my claim.

It argues that although we are considered to be partners, we do not qualify because we do not live together. The reason for this is that she has an autistic son and her elderly parents to look after.

Could you please try to tell Nationwide that this is 2015 and not everyone lives with their partner?

A. S., East Sussex

You’ve raised an excellent point which will affect countless readers of this column.

Many people travel on holidays with close friends or partners with whom they may not actually live.

While youngsters may quite happily still go on a holiday if one of their number is unable to travel, older people may not wish to or even be able to travel without a partner.

If insurance companies are using this as a get-out to avoid paying up on claims, this is a serious issue.

It did not take much pressure from me for Nationwide’s underwriters to buckle and agree to pay your claim.

It has now agreed to pay half the cost of the holiday minus the excess on the policy, so you will be getting £1,185.38.

In a statement, Nationwide said that its terms and conditions ‘clearly state that a partner is defined as a person cohabiting with the account holder’.

However, it said it had reviewed your concerns and has decided to honour the claim as a gesture of goodwill. It said it believed this was the right thing to do having taken into consideration your personal circumstances.

It added: ‘We have two set levels on what is deemed close family. However, we recognise exceptional circumstances, which is why we have reversed our initial decision in this case.’

I would strongly suggest any reader considering travelling with a close friend or partner check the wording of their policy very carefully and if necessary quiz the insurance company as to whether they would be covered if their travelling companion had to cancel due to illness or family misfortune.

YOU HAVE YOUR SAY

My aunt hoped to downsize but the only places in her price bracket were awful, tiny places. The elderly want to downsize but still need enough space to live.

J. M., by email

Today’s housing situation is nothing new. When my parents married in 1948, they couldn’t afford a house, and it took them until 1955 — when they had two young children and were in their 30s — before they had saved up enough for a deposit.

J. C., Lytham St Annes, Lancs.

Retirement villages are a great idea but offer such poor value for money. If they were run as not-for-profit organisations rather than with sky-high fees, more elderly people would want to live there.

B. P., Norwich.

I think a measure which would help the housing crisis would be for local authorities to purchase any properties left derelict or unoccupied for longer than a specified time, and put them back into the housing stock.

R. L., Lincoln

I looked at downsizing but some smaller places in my area cost more than my four-bedroom home, so I will have to stay where I am.

D. T., Stockton-on-Tees

I’ve looked into moving into a retirement apartment, but the high monthly fees and restrictions over your relatives selling your property after you die put it out of reach for most people.

B. S., Lincoln

The housing problem is nothing to do with the elderly. The simple maths is that there are eight million more people in the UK than there were in the Nineties, yet fewer than half a million extra homes have been built to house them.

S. L., Yorkshire

The reality is that it is uneconomic to downsize and that there are not enough smaller houses available to do so. House builders need to concentrate on providing the right type of houses at a price people can afford.

D. L., Sussex

I recently viewed a number of retirement properties for a relative. Most were tiny, badly planned and overpriced as well as being tied up in complex restrictions and leasing arrangements. If the Government wants the elderly to downsize, they need to give them incentives to do so.

D. D., Swindon

We would love to downsize from our four-bedroom home, but there is nothing available. There are no smaller houses or bungalows being built either — only apartment blocks with rip-off monthly charges.

D. P., Bristol.

My wife died on December 28, 2014. She had a £10,000 bond with the Post Office.

I agreed to leave the bond until maturity on July 16 this year.

I have phoned several times since and cannot get past the operators. Even after sending a copy of the will, probate and death certificates, they will not pass this money to me.

Can you help?

D. J., Doncaster

Your letter suggests the Post Office adopted a callous, insensitive and uncaring attitude to you, an elderly, recently widowed customer.

Even as Money Mail was highlighting the issue of bereaved people being abused by banks, you say the Post Office prevented you from withdrawing money that was rightfully yours. You provided them with all the documentation they could possibly need. And when you phoned, no one would help you, either because they were so badly trained that they did not understand procedures or because they just couldn’t care less.

Post Office Money has now reunited you with the £10,000, which you have chosen to put into a Growth bond.

It initially failed to inform me that it was resolving the issue, giving the clear impression it wished to cut me out of the loop, perhaps because it feared bad publicity.

I explained that it is neither my role nor that of Money Mail to help them to sweep poor customer service under the carpet.

If firms wish to avoid bad publicity, they should resolve issues before customers feel compelled to write to me

You told me that a lady from the Post Office called to apologise and promised that they will investigate what went wrong.

They have also paid you £145 compensation, and you say you are very happy with the outcome.

My late husband took a bank loan for £20,000 with Santander and put the money into our RBS joint account. He died in May 2011, which was a terrible shock.

I then began getting phone calls from Santander demanding payments. I later found out he had taken the loan in my name, forging my signature. But Santander refuses to believe this, and is still demanding that I repay them the money.

J. H., address supplied.

When I read your letter it appeared on the surface that you were a victim of a bullying bank.

However, delving below the surface sometimes reveals a fuller and more illuminating picture.

One reason I ask for a letter giving permission for an organisation to speak to me is so I can appraise myself of the full story.

And it seems you withheld some vital details. The most significant is that you had already taken your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service, which found in favour of Santander.

It was a joint loan arranged over the phone, and the paperwork was signed by you both.

The bank’s fraud department did look at the application again and confirms that the signature matches yours. It also appears that you made a payment by debit card after he passed away.

I have some sympathy for the situation you are in, but the money does appear to have been borrowed by both of you and with your full knowledge.

If you are in financial difficulty, then your best option is to call the National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 for advice.

STRAIGHT TO THE POINT

I’m interested in peer-to-peer lending, but I don’t have internet access. Can I deal with any firms by phone or post?

T. L., Hull.

Unfortunately not. According to the trade body for the industry, the Peer-to-Peer Association, all of its member firms only open accounts online. Once you’re a customer, you can call or write with queries or for help, but you can’t set up the account this way.

I hear in the news that home insurance costs have gone down. But my policy has just increased to £170. My insurer said this was because only the national average has fallen. Is this right?

L. E., Darlington.

Yes, the drop in home insurance premiums you’ve heard about will likely refer to the average premium across the UK. The price of an individual policy depends on lots of factors, including your postcode, how secure your home is and if you’ve made a previous claim. You may find that you can find a cheaper deal if you shop around.

I keep reading in Money Mail about a new higher state pension to be introduced in April. I’m already claiming my state pension. Will my payout change next year, too?

F. M., Broseley, Shropshire.

No. The new state pension of £151.25 a week applies only to those retiring on or after April 6, 2016. If you are already claiming your pension, it will still rise each year in line with whatever increase is higher: average earnings, price inflation or 2.5 per cent.

Every time I call to give my gas and electricity meter readings to my energy firm, E.on, it ignores them and just sends out an estimated bill. Can you help?

C. H., Cheshire.

This should now be resolved. A monthly direct debit has been set up based on how much gas and electricity you used last year. You will now get a quarterly bill that takes into account meter readings you submit.

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