shoshola:

I agree with maxtream, the Insurers only have to offer you an equivalent replacement model. If the Pioneer 43" plasma is no longer available, then from what I have seen so far, the Panasonic 42" plasma would appear to be the nearest that is currently available. In terms of the actual technical aspects of the Panasonic it is probably a better TV anyway. As such had the same Panasonic been available at time the Pioneer TV was on sale, the Panasonic would probably have been more expensive than the £2500 you paid.

If you disagree that the TV they are offering is not an equivalent replacement it is up to you to do your research and go back to the Insurers with the details if what TV would be. You do not have to go through Comet, you can use your own supplier, but the claim settlement will be limited to the value your Insurers could buy the same TV for.

Huckster

The price of TVs has come down in recent years so something that cost £2500 a few years ago will cost somewhat less today. You should not ask them for the same value as the damaged model (or for better specifications) but the same specification - or as close as you can get.

Your old TV was 43" with Freeview, the suggested replacement is 42" with Freesat. I don't think that there is much to choose on paper but I am sure that, if you can find a 43" with Freeview that you like, they will go along with that. 43" is quite an unusual measurement and it wouldn't surprise me if, when you actually measure the screen, it was actually slighty less.

The insurer will quickly lose patience with you if you demand something significantly better than the one that was damaged.

Hi there

I recently made a claim under the accidental damage terms of my home insurance policy from GreenBee insurance underwritten by AXA. The claim was for accidental damage to my TV. The claim has been excepted as valid and as such a claims handling service, BEValued, was appointed on behalf of GreenBee/AXA to proces my claim. They arranged for an engineer from Comet to visit my home to assess the damage and decide upon a course of action. The decision made was to replace the television as the repair was considered uneconomical. Allegedly the claims are processed and the reports may take 72hrs and then a further 24hrs to offer a settlement. Well a week later still no contact had been made so I called them myself. Already riled at this stage for lack of contact, the telephonist told me that the decision was to replace the product with an alternative etc. under the terms of my policy. Whether they would ever have called me is another matter.

I decided to have a look at what they proposed to see if it was suitable. My original TV was a plasma screen from Pioneer model PDP436XDE costing about £2500 and a set of Pioneer speakers about £200 to hear the sound, no integral speakers. Looking at my suggested alternative it is a set from Panasonic TX-P42V10B which I would be obliged to get from Comet, their so-called authorised supplier, and retailing for £1099. To me this does not seem like a fair alternative but I'm told that as Pioneer no longer make TV's this is considered a fair replacement. Ultimately I would like the same TV but if this is not available I'll take another Pioneer product and if not the same size at least a larger one, not the smaller one they suggest, or another brand of the same sort of value as my own. It seems a poor excuse on the part of the suppliers to offer me the cheapest product that closely matches my own. Part of the reason for buying the original was for it's appearance when off and when switched on. To my mind the replacement is ugly and imposing.

How does one go about resolving this dispute? The underwriters AXA say that if I can find my obsolete one somewhere they would have to payout for that. Is it fair to expect them to pay for a different all be it more expensive Pioneer TV if one is available?

All help appreciated.