Best house and contents insurance for holiday home

Acer- if they have already paid out on a claim, they cannot refuse to pay out on a major claim simply because the property doesn't have a C of H.

They would be contradicting themselves! What reason could they give for not paying out if they have previously settled claims without a C of H ?

All over Spain properties without C of H are bought, sold,  insured, rented out.

The council collects IBI from them, grants planning permissions, 

Electricity, Water  are connected to them, and owners receive bills without problem 

People in them register on the Padron, receive post etc

 Can you not accept the situation as it is ?

We all know that in Spain many things are not done by the book, but it all seems to work out, and people get on with their lives.

Acer- if they have already paid out on a claim, they cannot refuse to pay out on a major claim simply because the property doesn't have a C of H.

They would be contradicting themselves! What reason could they give for not paying out if they have previously settled claims without a C of H ?

All over Spain properties without C of H are bought, sold,  insured, rented out.

The council collects IBI from them, grants planning permissions, 

Electricity, Water  are connected to them, and owners receive bills without problem 

People in them register on the Padron, receive post etc

 Can you not accept the situation as it is ?

We all know that in Spain many things are not done by the book, but it all seems to work out, and people get on with their lives.

Acer- if they have already paid out on a claim, they cannot refuse to pay out on a major claim simply because the property doesn't have a C of H.

They would be contradicting themselves! What reason could they give for not paying out if they have previously settled claims without a C of H ?

All over Spain properties without C of H are bought, sold,  insured, rented out.

The council collects IBI from them, grants planning permissions, 

Electricity, Water  are connected to them, and owners receive bills without problem 

People in them register on the Padron, receive post etc

 Can you not accept the situation as it is ?

We all know that in Spain many things are not done by the book, but it all seems to work out, and people get on with their lives.

Camposol,

No matter how many times you say it the facts remain unchanged..

The Spanish Habitation Certificate is confirmation from the building control department at the local town hall that the building has been completed to the satisfactory standard and is OK to occupy.  Without this there is no evidence that it was compliant and if the building is destroyed by fire how do you do so? 

Many forms of material damage insurance have an implied warranty that the item being insured is sound.  A breach of any warranty nullifies the insurance competely.  The insurer does not have to show this was relevant to the loss.

A good example is in marine hull insurance where there is always an implied warranty that the vessel is seaworthy.  Over the years there's been loads of claims where vessels have sunk without any apparent reason.  Of course sometimes the vessel is lost and not recoverable to determine the cause.  To avoid uncertainty it has become standard practice for vessels to have periodic inspections and some form of condition survey issued.  If the shipowner has a total loss and cannot prove his vessel was sound the claim will otherwise be denied.

In motor insurance in the UK if you have a claim and your MOT has expired these days most insurers will repudiate liability for the damage repair/loss regardless of responsibility.  The holding of a valid MOT in this case is a condition precedent to liability as this requirement is stated in the policy.  But the bottom line is that the insurer will not usually pay, regardless, as you are in breach of a policy condition.

The fact that your insurer has paid a claim previously has absolutely no relevance.  They are perfectly entitled to throw out the next one as I explained before.

Why not speak to your insurer and ask the hypothetical question?   If the answer is positive ask them to confirm it in writing to you.  If you copy it to me - I'll donate €100 to a charity of your choice.

Duplication !!!

Sorry Acer.

But my next door neighbour to the house I had the robbery in also had no H/C, did have insurance from a company in Spain, while away had a burst pipe which flooded everything, the insurance company gave him no problems, replaced everything that was damaged, and paid the 800€ water bill he got for the water loss.

I have no doubt this can be of the insurance companies discretion....But....

If every, and or any insurance company refused to pay out on a claim using the no H/C clause then the whole of Spain, and the utility companies, plus the legal boys could end up with an egg covered face for providing a service like electricity  / water etc in the first place without doing any safety checks before and after they fitted said services. 

Had to have been many thousands of claims paid out to folk who had no H/C, had they're not been payout's that would have been another TV show done on why not to buy in Spain.

acer- when my insurance is due in April, I will ask them!

acer- when my insurance is due in April, I will ask them!

acer- when my insurance is due in April, I will ask them!

Camposol,

I'll be interested to know their reply - it's best not to rely on a glib comment - in writing is better.

To re-iterate, the insurer may cite lots of claims they've paid without a quibble, but it's the big one that causes concern, where technically the house should not be occupied.  Most insurers in Spain will pass files for the large claims to their Head Office, in Madrid or somewhere, where they may have a different attitude.